A horde of toddlers flocked to New Theatre for the live show of their favourite porcine princess Peppa Pig. And they were not disappointed...

The show was anchored by a very likeable main character Daisy; the actor had endless energy and engaged the young audience well with her enthusiasm and charm. Peppa and her friends were large puppets handled by actors dressed in black. Whilst some puppet shows we have been to have disappointed, I felt this set-up worked really well - for pre-schoolers I don’t think seeing the puppeteers had any negative effect - they were just transfixed by the puppets. From an adult perspective, I liked being able to see the people behind the puppets; they really seemed to be enjoying themselves and again their enthusiasm was infectious.

The show featured the songs from the show including the well known 'Bing Bong Bing' which the kids loved. Audience interaction with dancing and singing was actively encouraged throughout. The set was colourful and eye catching, and use of special effects were simple yet effective for the age group. Fairy lights resembling fireflies and a light show over a black screen in particularly mesmerised the audience. Running length was appropriately short with an adequate interval for little ones. If I had to be picky, I would suggest that the Peppa memorabilia be reserved for sale after the show as the whirling Peppa light toys were a bit distracting when kids left them on throughout the performance, but that is a technical issue rather than anything directly show related.

My four-year-old Peppa fan enjoyed the show and couldn’t pick one favourite scene. My one-year-old, who is not as familiar with Peppa as his brother, was still entranced the whole way through with a huge grin on his face.

I would recommend the show for anyone with kids under 4 years old and even for babies as it is sweet and enchanting. Thumbs up from this family!