Pinocchio – this Chichester wonderland is truly awe-inspiring

But the wonderful interpretation of the story of the puppet that comes to life without the need of strings technically just about achieves that.

Of course, Director Dale Rooks isn’t merely a genius. She is a legend. She, more than anyone else, has taken Chichester’s youth theatre to the greatest heights – and consistently so. How many young lives has she transformed? How many children has she inspired to love the arts? How many fledgling careers has she launched?

This is not the biggest nor the most fancy gig under her tenure – but just like the transformation of a piece of wood into the living, breathing mischievous puppet whose nose always lengthens when he tells a lie, this is a miracle none the less.

In this Covid era, how do you bring so many young people together in separate teams to perform to this standard? The sheer achievement of putting on any show, let alone of this quality and class, physically moved me to tears.

That is a sentimentality I rarely allow myself in the stalls.

Simon Higlett is the prince of set design and his revolving three-dimensional masterpiece is the fulcrum for all the fun.

On the night we attended Archie Elliot owned the stage as the puppet who seeks to do right despite the dreadful temptations of Wonderland. Oh what budding theatrical talent!

While Meg Bewley grounded the role of fairy with a hint of Miranda Hart slightly gauche comedy.

But let’s not single out too many individuals. All were brilliant.

A moral too at the end – you don’t need to be a ‘real boy’ like everyone else. You just need to be yourself and celebrate your uniqueness before your creator – even if it is an elderly carpenter called Geppetto.