Enough has been said about Forkbeard Fantasy to know they are the theatrical equivalent of a strange old lady feeding pigeons in the park.

They're odd, certainly, perhaps even a little scary but delve beneath the surface and you will find a depth of intelligence that is wholly unexpected.

Take The Fall Of The House Of Usherettes, for example. Taken on a basic level, it's a tale of three sisters, custodians of a mysterious and rare cinema stock known as liquid film.

All big hair and flapping torches, the Usherettes of the dilapidated Empire Picture Palace are willing to do anything to protect their precious movie magic, including trapping would-be thieves in a prison of celluloid frames.

Watch with any semblance of cinematic, literary or musical knowledge and the in-jokes keep running as the references roll in. Then it all becomes a Machiavellian nightmare as Edgar Allen Poe clashes with German expressionism via Macbeth mixed with Bernard Herrmann's Psycho score, Stanley Kubrick and Nic Roeg, culminating in a Ray Harryhausen-style monster of a finale and a genius means of hairnet-related escape.

Giving the audience the opportunity to revel in mild arrogance as they get the sly nudges, while offering up a trippy feast of inventive set design, caricature characters and a plot which makes no sense whatsoever, Forkbeard dives into the bizarre and pulls out a winner.

For tickets call 01273 709709