That Miss Potter was a bit of a rotter with her sharp-eyed, unsentimental observations on farmyard animals and crisp sour apple prose. Both are retained in Adrian Mitchell's adaptation which is gentle enough for its four-plus age range, but has plenty of bite as it proves that Beatrix was perhaps not quite so irritating as Renée Zellweger would have us believe.
After a slightly dickey start this is a delightful show and, even better, it is never sentimental. It charms because it doesn't try too hard to be charming, and the cruelty and harshness of nature is never far away in its treatment of the stupid Jemima, Jeremy Fisher's uncomfortably close encounter with an old trout, the comeuppance of Squirrel Nutkin (clearly in need of a dose of Ritalin) and the near-death experience of naughty Tom Kitten who is almost made into roly poly pudding and eaten by rats, the latter particularly beautifully portrayed, like low-life Charles Dickens creations. Tabitha Twitchett is a bit of a panto dame, and Tom's teenage sisters could put in a guest appearance on The Catherine Tate Show.
This is theatre that is rich in invention, with an orange feather duster serving for a fox's tail, elastic bands for worms and a glove standing in for a mole. Stephen NcNeff's score and songs are a genuine pleasure, Sophia Lovell Smith's design is full of detail and Tony Graham's production and his cast of seven talented actor-musicians combine storytelling and physical theatre to good and simple effect.
· Until April 22. Box office: 020-7645 0560.
