In the world of adult puppet company Faulty Optic, small is not always beautiful. It can also be damaged, deranged and downright disturbing. That's the case with Soiled, a tiny tragi-comic fable of epic proportions which takes its protagonist, a little blue man who has loved and lost, and its audience, to beyond the grave and back. It is a dank, dark, damp show that makes you think of Dennis Nilsen's drains, and leaves you feeling in urgent need of a long soak in a hot bath.
To be brutally honest, narrative is not Faulty Optic's strong point. But in an hour-long piece playing as part of the London International Mime festival, it does not seem to matter that you're not always entirely sure exactly what is going on, why it is that the hero is suddenly involved in a punch-up with a boxing ballerina, or what precisely is the nature of the dark secrets that are being buried and excavated along with the bodies.
That's because Faulty Optic never falter for a second in their creation of a total world - this miniature hell where the bizarre and the banal sit side by side. The premise of a deranged tweeting sparrow with Tourette's syndrome and statues that come to life somehow seem entirely logical.
So intense is the conviction of puppeteers Gavin Glover and Liz Walker that you believe everything too. You forget that you are watching puppets. The technique is dazzling, and the piece flawlessly mixes not just its moods but also its media, taking you from the sweetness of a black and white silent film into a micro installation that makes you feel as if you are tunnelling down into hell itself. One wonders at the minds that can create this freaky and creepy 60 minutes, but you admire them wholeheartedly, too.
· Until Thursday. Box office: 020-7930 3647
