PART biography, part song, Looking Through a Glass Onion pays tribute to the honesty and implicit love of John Lennon's lyricism.

John Waters, who has been performing the work for 20 years, does not seek to impersonate Lennon; he describes his portrayal as "John Lennon, filtered through John Waters."

"The way in which I do the monologue, I'm not wanting people to see it as a Lennon version of an Elvis impersonator," Waters said.

"I just wanted it to lie in the middle."

He has travelled to the region previously as part of the last tour in 2001 to 2003, but said the current show had "improved in intensity" due to the stripped-back nature of the musical arrangements.

Where they have previously used a band to create the music, it will be performed "organically" by the dynamic duo of Waters and the talented Stewart D'Arrietta (director/performer/composer).

"We revisit the show roughly every seven years," Waters said.

"It allows us to re-examine the songs and the lyrics.

"Stewart's like a one-man orchestra anyway."

The specific songs are chosen for their "autobiographical nature", a quality that Waters admires in John Lennon.

"His honesty meant that he opened himself up. He was really a kind of journalist ù he gave more than what was asked of him, he would give out too much information."

For Waters, the process of performing live is always fresh and challenging.

Throughout the live performances, he alters the show's structure and tempo accordingly to capture the overall vibe of the audience.

"I suppose it's esoteric; I do feel there's an unspoken communication between me and the audience," he said.

Although some alterations have been made since the original 1992 version, the show doesn't change much in essence.

The work is neither a play nor a musical; it is a theatrical piece, a constant flow of speech and song all underscored instrumentally.

Although Waters initially created the work as a three-week stage show, its success meant over the years it has become his "thing".

For the audience this is either an emotional trip down memory lane or a wonderful introduction to the life and times of a musical great. The show attracts baby-boomers, for whom the songs are "a soundtrack of their lives", as well as the younger generation who see Lennon as an icon of popular culture.

Looking Through a Glass Onion will show at the Swan Hill Town Hall on Sunday, February 26.