Peter Rabbit comes in many forms these days and we were delighted that this rendition was very true to the original. It’s a short show, perfect for under 5s, though between our party we spanned three generations, and all enjoyed it, even the discerning 8 year old. Narrator Oskar McCarthy told Beatrix Potter’s story as written, plus asides, interspersed with Haydn string quartets, rendering all the characters in turn, and with not a sniff of the TV show in sight, though one of the audience did ask where Benjamin Bunny was!

One of the real highlights was the Haydn, played beautifully by a young and very polished quartet. They seemed to communicate with each other telepathically, and played sensitively but with great clarity. With little snippets appearing for each bunny as they were introduced I wondered if Haydn’ was providing themes or leitmotifs, but mostly the music was incidental, more of a scene-changer than anything else. At any rate the length of pieces was perfectly judged, and the youngest audience members sat spellbound.

Having been spoilt by Funomusica and Cushion Concerts, we felt the production missed a bit of an opportunity to introduce Haydn or the instruments, and even the programme didn’t elaborate on why Haydn had been chosen to fit with Potter. She might well have listened to him but history doesn’t seem to record that she loved him! We also felt the musicians could have been employed to depict the incidental characters a bit more, since they did such a lovely job with the mouse with her mouth too full of peas to direct Peter to the gate.

This year the audience had the luxury of chairs, and of course the gardens are a beautiful setting for any activity, and as a perk, tickets give you access to the rest of the garden for as long as you want. It would have been lovely to stage this show in the veg garden! But as it were we were in a sunny glade.The linear journey that Peter makes, pinned as it were to the location of the gate, didn’t come across strongly, but since the audience all knew the story well they didn’t seem confused by the racing in circles.

The production is described as feel-good, which I don’t think is a very Potter-ian concept. Of course it’s a well-loved story and we were all happy to hear it, but Peter getting his comeuppance is built in, especially comparing his chamomile tea with the smug little good bunnies and their tasty supper! In addition, some of Oskar’s asides were very self-deprecating, and I didn’t really get the sense he loved the story or was entirely convinced its magic alone would hold us all transfixed. But I did love his dramatic rendition of looking under the plant pots, which fit perfectly into the story and added something visual.