TRANSPORT yourself to another world with an uplifting trip to the theatre this half term.

The Drowsy Chaperone is perhaps not one of the best-known musicals but if you let that put you off you’ll be missing out.

It certainly packs a punch and has more than its fair share of show-stopping song and dance numbers and a lot of laughs along the way.

It wasn’t a coincidence that it won five Tony Awards and was described by New York Magazine as “the perfect Broadway musical.”

And professionally-trained students from the Big Little Theatre School are once again giving notice that they too plan to tread to boards in the world’s top venues one day.

The Drowsy Chaperone features Man in Chair, a musical theatre and comedy fan who brings a fictional smash-hit musical vividly to life in his apartment.

It is directed by Susan Raasay, with choreography by Emma Woods and musical direction by Colin Billing.

Performances from the incredibly talented cast are outstanding but this will come as no surprise to anyone who has seen this theatre school in action before.

It remains, however, difficult to believe that most of them are still at school and don’t do this for a living.

Stand-out performances from the man in the chair himself and the permanently inebriated chaperone head up a strong line-up.

We’ve missed the theatre over the last two years as lockdowns and restrictions led to the closure of venues or forced us to sit what felt like miles apart in auditoriums with little atmosphere.

Big Little’s production of this award-winning musical seems an apt way to mark the end of all remaining Covid restrictions in England with a good old-fashioned, fun night out.

The Drowsy Chaperone leaves lockdown and misery somewhere in the dim and distant past. It’s a joy to sit in a full theatre.

The show runs every evening until Saturday February 26 at 7.30pm with additional Thursday and Saturday matinees at 3pm at the Performing Arts Centre, East Way, Bournemouth. Tickets are available from boxoffice.biglittle.biz