In terms of its look and original design, Les Enfants Terribles’s The Trench could have just as easily sat in the main Festival as the Fringe.

The tale of a First World War miner trapped underground following an explosion was ingeniously presented.

Scenery flats, minimal but effective lighting cues, beautiful animation, stark shadow puppetry and great physical performances from Ben Warwick and his three-strong chorus combined to create the claustrophobia of living and dying underneath a bloody battlefield.

Alexander Wolfe’s gorgeous live music added to the nightmarish atmosphere, channelling the vocal styling of Elbow’s Guy Garvey mixed with discordant violin bow scrapings.

But when the fantasy elements of the story took over it felt like a great opportunity had been lost.

Following the explosion, Bert met an expertly realised puppet demon which set him three quests – all graphically illustrating that war is hell.

Instead of the strong opening surrounding the little known story of the miners who risked their lives laying explosives underneath enemy lines, it felt like the messages The Trench put across in the second half had already been said many times before.

Allied to the self-consciously important and poetic language and heavy narration throughout, it was hard to feel a connection with Bert the miner as he underwent his horrific torments.