An upper class English family deal with the personal impact of their father leaving to fight in the First World War in this accomplished production by emerging company HookHitch Theatre. The piece focuses on the family’s children and the magical worlds they conjure in order to cope with the separation. The brooding divisions between the adults simmer over their heads as the childish realm of imagination collides with the harsh reality of the adult world.

The company perform their roles with utter conviction, the staging is accomplished, and the musical accompaniment between scenes sets the atmosphere very well, sparkling in places through the use of soaring harmony and emotive lyrics. The puppetry comes as something of a surprise; it is beautifully done, in particular the character from the children’s games of a bear who comes to life as a boy. The skills of the puppeteers shine incredibly briefly, and I found myself wanting far more – for it was in these brief moments where the magic of the children’s imagination came into bloom and elevated the piece considerably.

At moments the acting is perhaps a little heavy handed, and the portrayal of early twentieth century Englishness lacks a sense of realism in places. When this combines with an overly emotive song the piece can wander dangerously near humour.

But the same conviction that sometimes leads it astray is also what makes the production shine. By the end I found myself surprised at the amount I had invested in the characters; they move between funny and endearing, charming and heartbreaking. The ending comes as something of a surprise and perhaps could do with a little more clarification in the text. But as the music of the final song swelled and the central character revealed her long hidden grief, I found the atmosphere quite overwhelming, and tingles of electricity ran through me.

The impact of this production sneaks up on you: by the end the audience were enraptured, and this was down to the commendable skills of the ensemble. HookHitch Theatre are most certainly a company to watch in the future.