Shaun's Big Show

TAKING a two-year-old to the theatre for the first time is a gamble. Will they enjoy the show? Will they sit still? Will they find the dark, the crowd or the characters terrifying and demand to be taken home?

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Picking a show based on a much-loved TV favourite will improve your odds of making it through without disaster – but then you’re still banking on that show delivering the same energy, warmth and fun of its on-screen counterpart.

Shaun’s Big Show – the stage version of Shaun the Sheep, another fun creation by Wallace and Grommit studio Aardman Animations – does exactly that.

From the moment the oh-so-familiar theme tune rang through the Bristol Hippodrome auditorium, our little one was mesmerised.

Props experts have done a terrific job in recreating Shaun’s farmyard universe, and the characters themselves are instantly recognisable.

That helps youngsters feel they’re among friends from the word go, meaning they can instantly embrace the action and enjoy the show.

And what a fun show it is! Packed full of lively dance routines, and boasting music ranging from Tchaikovsky to the Black Eyed Peas, the show is a non-stop 90-minute display of energy and colour.

Shaun’s trademark humour runs throughout, too.

Familiar themes – tubby Shirley’s fondness for a snack, little Timmy’s appealing vulnerability, Bitser’s struggles to contain the adventurous sheep and the dim-witted farmer’s obliviousness to all the goings-on – help keep the young audience comfortable.

It’s both familiar and new – the perfect blend to keep them spellbound.

But as with the TV show, it’s the mischievous pigs who steal the show. Their devilment during good-natured battles with the sheep is the highlight of scene after scene, and provides plenty of humour – even for the grown-ups.

Indeed, while the show is unquestionably one for the kids, there is enough wit and charm to keep the whole family entertained.

So our gamble was undoubtedly a success. Except for one problem. When the curtain fell, our appreciative two-year-old requested: “More Shaun the Sheep. More Shaun the Sheep.”

Maybe we’ll be back again tomorrow…

* Shaun’s Big Show runs until Saturday at the Bristol Hippodrome. Tickets, priced £11.50-16.50, are available from the box office on 0117 3023310.