★★★★☆ This vibrant, fast-paced version is not quite as glossily sanitised as the 1978 movie, but it is family friendly, the emphasis being on song and dance, rather than on social realism. Yes, the greasers strut their stuff in their leather jackets, but though they are in a gang, they are a long way from being gangsters.

★★★★★ What was not to like? Bright and beautifully delivered performances from the entire company were given a fulcrum by the scintillating Soraya Mafi as the cheeky, irrepressible Countess’s maid, Susanna alongside the deliciously warm bass tones of David Ireland as Figaro.

★★★★☆ This is a dazzling ballet, chock-full of spectacle, high drama and wonderful dancing. The idea of a girl condemned to dance non-stop comes originally from Hans Christian Andersen’s sternly moral story of a peasant girl called Karen, who is so enamoured of her new red shoes that she dares to wear them to church.

★★★★☆ Freshly unwrapped, wound up and bouncing with energy, Daisy Wood-Davis owns the stage as Carole. Inevitably with this genre there is little opportunity for emotional development, but Ms Wood-Davis has a cat’s whisker control over the development of Ms King’s maturing personality

★★★☆☆ Once again, the skills of The Twins FX have been employed to produce a jaw-dropping moment or two.  This year, the visual highlight is surely the sight of Dick at the wheel of a flying double-decker bus that soars out over the auditorium.