RICHARD Harris’s 25-year-old play-with-music (it’s not a musical) has survived the passage of time perfectly intact.

This production by Richard Baron was enjoyable fare, the setting of a dilapidated village hall hosting a dysfunctional group of amateur tap dancers not seeming out of touch at all.

Understudy Felicity Butler made a pretty good Mavis, although she lacked a little in strength, particularly apparent when her character was angry (and should have been fuming).

Standout by a long way was Katie Kerr’s hilarious, larger-than-life Sylvia, her comic timing absolutely spot on.

Also hitting the mark was Janet de Vigne’s miserable old Mrs Fraser and Karen Traynor’s dippy Dorothy, while Johanne Murdock’s timid Andy’s outburst was frankly frightening!

Corrie’s Brian Capron wasn’t quite right as gawky Geoffrey, unable as he was to completely stifle his self-assured manner, but Anita Harris’s Vera was well done, delivering the cracking lines of the play perfectly: “It may be February outside, but it’s always August under your armpits!”

The company as a whole dealt with the Pavilion’s acoustics admirably (the theatre doesn’t necessarily suit plays, much of the dialogue towards the rear of the stage being lost), and the exciting, toe-tapping finale was an absolute joy to behold, reducing the slightly stupefying effects of what is essentially a rather over-long production.