Peggy and the Spaceman (24:7 Theatre Festival)

Peggy’s a daydreamer. Her curiosity is piqued learning about space travel at school and she decides that a trip to Albert Square to see Yuri Gagarin would be better than yet another day spent being called Eggy Peggy by Mean Janine.

The script is full of references to Gagarin’s 1961 visit to Manchester, complete with soundtrack and mention of the gold medal the city’s foundry workers presented to Gagarin. It’s not at all a simplistic or patronising script and should keep adults and children alike entertained.

The design is brilliant – huge praise for Olivia Du Monceau; I loved how one relatively simple piece of furniture was used throughout as school desk, dining table, time capsule, rocket ship (called Beswick), and probably many more I’ve forgotten. There’s lots of movement around the stage, which feels as energetic as it needs to be (but not frantic) – all necessary when a piece is performed in a round.

Saira Choudhry is perfectly cast as Peggy with a blend of determination, wide-eyed innocence and vulnerability, Eve Robertson is wonderfully versatile and expressive as Mean Janine (and others!) and then there’s the grown-up (but not too grown-up) influence of Luke Walker. I found Luke Walker’s warmth playing both Yuri Gagarin and Peggy’s dad a lovely combination, with some very touching scenes (I confess, I was glad I had tissues close at hand towards the end). Peggy is a very lucky girl to have two great heroes in her life.

Just go and see it (with or without children) – and look out for anything else Joyce Branagh comes up with in the future.

Peggy and the Spaceman is on as part of 24:7 Theatre Festival at Sacha’s Hotel between 26-29 July at 3.30pm.