Father Christmas

West Yorkshire Playhouse, Leeds

3 Stars

Bloomin' Christmas! It's the one night of the year that Father Christmas has to work and he's not happy to be dragged away from dreams of holidays in the sun.

Adapted from Raymond Briggs's popular book in collaboration with West Yorkshire Playhouse, Lyric Hammersmith and Pins and Needles, this one-act play follows Santa as he prepares his sleigh to deliver presents to sleeping children the world over.

Aimed at two to six-year-olds, the slow-paced story unfolds with plenty of visual and musical delights. Charming puppets designed by Max Humphries and Cheryl Brown gnaw on socks and deliver gumball chicken eggs.

Zoe Squire's split-level set design, meanwhile, unfolds like a giant advent calendar to reveal the Leaning Tower of Pisa and the Eiffel Tower, where presents are being dispatched.

The strong musical element, providing much of the humour, is provided by on-stage foley artist Naomi Lee Schulke. Wrestling with a wide range of instruments, she creates sound for everything from Father Christmas's creaking bones to his bowel movements.

The success of this soundtrack is dependent on the expressiveness of Seamus O'Neill as Father Christmas, who manages to be simultaneously grumpy yet loveable as he finishes his night's work and retires to bed with more dreams of summer sun.

Runs until January 11. Box office: (0113) 213-770

Susan Darlington