Picture: Alex Brenner

The Light Princess continues at the Albany Deptford, London until 24 December 2023.

Star rating: two stars ★ ★ ✩ ✩ ✩

The Light Princess is a devised three-hander about a princess in a country called Sneachta who is “different” because she can float, which in this context means fly. Her mother despairs but eventually accepts this otherness, once her daughter has found a supportive friend.

It’s marketed as “a grown-up musical for all the family” with specific mention of ages three to seven in the small print. Actually the sophisticated ideas it tries to convey – at some length – are way too complex for most pre-schoolers. The young children in the two families behind me were literally running about the back of the theatre, totally disengaged, which is pretty distracting for anyone, of any age, able or wanting to watch the show and think about the issues.

And that’s a pity because there’s some good work here …