The Girl With The Iron Claws

Taking as their starting point a Nordic myth that clearly shares some of its roots with Beauty and the Beast, The Wrong Crowd weave a subtle, dark fairytale about an independent-minded princess who falls in love with a bear (of course, he’s really a king who was cursed by the Troll Queen). And there, the similarities to squeaky-clean Disnified stories end. The company are unafraid to mine those seams of darkness and sexuality that are routinely scrubbed from our fairytales, using inventive puppetry, excellent live performance, song and a hefty dose of clever humour to engage a grown-up audience. There’s a folky, rough-hewn edge worked into the production to great effect, too, and a very moving moral about the power of love that gains impact from the sheer quality of the storytelling.

It’s rare, on the Fringe, to find a production where everything – writing, ensemble, production and performances – is of this consistently high standard; even rarer for this to be the work of a debut company. Look out for The Wrong Crowd in the future, but see them now too.

Underbelly, 0844 545 8252, until 28 Aug, 1.35pm, £8.50–£10 (£7.50–£9).