It's a mere pre-Christmas warm-up for the beloved institution that has magnified the hangovers of generations of south Dublin parents, but I didn't hear any of the under-eights complaining.
In the long, low space that is this theatre, Eugene Lambert and company rely on the children to provide most of the noise, and audiences invariably reply ear-splittingly. This is especially the case with the prologue appearance of the delightful dog, Judge, whose sideways comic sensibility and basic cheek are perfect for this crowd.
The Man Who Knew Best is a timely riposte to Charlie McCreevy about the social and economic value of work in the home. Really. On a bucolic farm setting, puppets Peter and Maureen expand on a standard Punch-and-Judy scenario (employed briefly in part two of this show) when Peter tries his hand at minding home and baby, and haplessly, frantically, discovers that it's trickier than he thought.
After the interval, The Three Little Pigs is in familiar Lambert territory, and is altogether slacker in its pace and staging than The Man Who Knew Best. Not that you'd know by the kids, who kept singing and shouting even as the show stretched past 90 good-value minutes.
Runs next Saturday and Sunday at 3.30 p.m. (booking at 01-2800974)
