The reputation of children's theatre company Wee Stories is such that they were invited, this year, to export their maverick version of Treasure Island to Barbados. Luckily for Brighton audiences, however, their UK tour was already confirmed.

And so this weekend, instead of sunning themselves on a tropical beach, Andy Cannon and Iain Johnstone will be washed up at the Gardner Arts Centre, on a raft made of 50 empty champagne bottles. The ultimate Boy's Own fantasy,Robert Lewis Stevenson's swashbuckling story is packed with colourful characters, bloodthirsty action and a hero with whom any child can identify.

When an old map is discovered at his family's inn among a dead man's possessions, Jim Hawkins sets out on one of the most famous adventures in history, joining the crew of the Hispaniola in search of buried pirate treasure.

Overhearing a mutinous plot by the one-legged ship's cook, Long John Silver, Jim finds himself standing alone in the shadow of the Jolly Roger, determined to rescue the treasure and save the lives of his honourable mates.

This, at least, is the gist of the 1883 novel. But, with a cast of two and an established talent for riotous humour, Wee Stories have neither the means nor the inclination for a laborious re-telling.

Instead, Cannon and Johnstone have come up with an ingenious frame, which foregrounds the act of storytelling and, much to the delight of the recommended eight-plus audience, allows for wee and fart jokes aplenty.

In this dynamic adaptation, two musicians are adrift on a raft after the cruise liner on which they were working sinks. Fed-up with providing floating target practice for the noisy gulls, they decide to entertain themselves by acting out their favourite book, Treasure Island, using whatever flotsam and jetsam comes to hand.

"They are armed only with bananas, several crates of champagne, a ukulele, a double bass and a copy of Treasure Island", says Johnstone. Yet this doesn't stop them conjuring all the book's characters, including marooned exile Ben Gunn, the doomed Billy Bones and even Jim's mum.

"I like to think of it as child-friendly rather than children's theatre," says Cannon, who co-founded Wee Stories in 1995. "I was interested in developing a style based on storytelling but which would also draw on the work I had done in theatre workshops and in stand-up comedy."

Following hot on the heels of last year's award-winning Arthur: The Story Of A King and accentuating its charms with a scaled-up set and original live music, this novel show should provide a family experience to be treasured.

There will be a free talk after the last performance.