Beowulf provoked a transformation within me: from a bad-tempered adult to an indulgent ten-year-old. Barely Human Puppets expertly took the audience back to our bedtimes and delivered a tale that – unless your father is Brian Blessed – would trounce any by your mum and dad.

This was not just a simple retelling, the story was adapted, simplified and retold by Craig Jordan-Baker, aiming to provoke thoughts about subjects that are as applicable now as they were 1,000 years ago.

The show was a reader’s mind come to life during a good book. We were introduced to an exquisite storyteller, Tom Dussek, whose voices and narrative were supported by a set of puppets, taking the “reader” on a journey through Beowulf’s story.

The use of puppets, though sometimes a bit cumbersome, was a stroke of genius. It gave the audience enough to go on but allowed us to fill in the blanks with our own imagination, making this a brilliantly involved show. If you allowed yourself, this suspension of disbelief was rewarded with some truly spectacular moments, made all the more so but its sheer simplicity.

It made me want to read a book and go back again. Mission accomplished, I say.