Farm Boy

Two men, Grandpa and Grandson, share the stage with a green Fordson tractor and a toolbox. The men weave stories that link four generations, covering the period in farming history where tractors took over from horses, and culminate in a hare versus tortoise style competition.

Farm Boy is adapted from the book by former Children’s Laureate Michael Morpurgo, as the sequel to War Horse (the stage version of which, with its extraordinary life-size horse puppets, continues to wow audiences in London).

Almost everything is in place to mark Farm Boy out as one of the hits of this year’s Fringe. Certainly this is a serious production that trusts that children might have longer attention spans than goldfish. However, too much sentimentality, and the production’s tendency to tell rather than show, results in a show that, dramatically at least, doesn’t ever really get going.

Assembly Rooms, 623 3030, until 30 Aug (not 17), 11.45am, £10–£11 (£9–£10).