The Girl Who

Given that it takes its lead from the Choose Your Own Adventure books so popular in the '80s, there’s less ‘death by ravine’ in this show than I—at least—expected. The Girl Who is a child-friendly, musical affair, where the decisions we make on behalf of the young heroine are really metaphorical life choices.

Anna’s quest to find her parents, who go missing on the day of her birthday party, is a mix of Alice in Wonderland and The Wizard of Oz, with an all-singing cast of fantastical characters in colourful scenarios. Imaginatively conceived and staged, it works best when the earnest power ballads stop and a sense of fun reigns.

Director Andrew Panton keeps things fluid and lively in the circus-like Spiegeltent. Neshla Caplan is an engagingly no-nonsense Anna, while Martin Murphy stands out as grumpy guardian of the gate, Brook. And the realisation of evil lord Screwtape with little more than a suitcase and a lampshade is great.

The points at which we decide Anna’s journey are varyingly successful. While a giant noughts-and-crosses game accompanied by flashing lights and rocky music is a blast, our culpability in a moral choice is fudged by it being a case of "Which hand is it in?". If nothing else, it makes Anna’s subsequent treatment a bit harsh.

But a bravely sad ending packs a real punch, casting a careless decision we make right at the start in a poignant light. We don't always know what's going to be momentous in life; there is a grown-up conclusion here to the show title’s unfinished sentence.