Half twink, half hunk — meet the strongest boy in the world. Jack(son Peter Gabriel Sledge)Hammer is the star attraction of the circus, a boy so strong his father has to remind him 'we don't touch our friends'. The spectacle is immense, with Werner's masterful ventriloquism, gorgeously made puppets, and dizzying music and sound design. As the circus acts get ever more daring, the performers begin to wonder why they accept being worked so hard, by their creepy, domineering showman. Freddy Hayes's puppets bring out the unique creepiness of this circus: Jack Hammer's father's long red vinyl gloves, his ghastly face: how could he be a man who loves to entertain? The show throughout is razor-sharp in its lines, its twists and turns. Jack Hammer is performer but also boy: his voices and whole persona shifts with it, from a macho transatlantic baritone to a squeaky soprano resembling Mickey Mouse. The story winds and it all rests on Jack's shoulders to find out the truth. Does he, as Slippy the Sea Lion asks, want his own dream for his life? 'Some of us,' Jack insists, 'have our DEAD MOTHER'S DREAM!' Slippy (another excellent puppet) winces. Are we convinced? What can Jack learn about his late, darling mother who loved the circus?

21:50 | 1-24 August, Pleasance Dome, 10

Photos by Matt Stronge, review by Will J. Wood.