By Richard Fairman [Financial Times, 3 January 2011]

The most heartwarming moment at this matinee performance was the roar of applause that went up as Hansel and Gretel gleefully upended the Witch into her oven for a roasting. It had been clear in the foyer that there were a large number of children among the audience, but until then the silence in the theatre had suggested they were all asleep.