Inspired by Lewis Carroll's classic poem, Steve Tiplady has come up with a superb piece of nonsense in his first production as the Little Angel's artistic director. I say nonsense, because that of course is how we all remember Carroll's poem with its forest full of the slithy toves, the jubjub birds, the frumious bandersnatch and the mome raths.
Only, in this case, nonsense makes an awful lot of sense as the over-protective parent comes under scrutiny and the child must find the courage to face his fears and grow to maturity. It is classic fairytale stuff and is done here with wild imagination, and if the narrative isn't always entirely easy to follow, it doesn't matter, because you can always feel what it all means via the glorious visuals and the atmospheric soundscape.
Young Milo has been told that when he is seven he can go outside on his own. But his neurotic parents ensure that he has to keep on celebrating his sixth birthday so fearful are they of the jabberwock beyond and "the jaws that bite, the claws that catch". But when Milo does make his break for freedom, he discovers that although the world outside his cosy little house is scary, it can also be an exciting and friendly place.
There is never a question that the message swamps the medium here, because this is one of those great children's shows that work largely in the realm of the unconscious and which has a visual imagination that is extravagant and Quixotic. Peter O'Rouke's forest design is a marvel of angular beauty and the puppets are a wonderful mix of the utilitarian and the fantastical as they conjure the strange creatures lurking in the forest. A wonderful show from a company that is demonstrating a new and swaggering confidence.
· Until May 2. Box office: 020-7226 1787.
