TV and book favourite Angelina The Ballerina pirouetted on to the stage to the delight of cheering young girls who would have loved to have put on a tutu and joined her.

Ideally, I would have been preferred to be having a beer and watching the beach volleyball at the Olympics, but we all have to make sacrifices for our children.

The Olympic affect may have had an impact on attendance, as the venue was only half-full for Tuesday’s opening show. But those who did turn up were treated to an evening of squeaky-clean family fun, if rather cheesy at times. I had visions of actors in giant mouse costumes prancing about in tutus, so was surprised, and rather disappointed, to find that the characters had stick-on ears and tails and whiskers painted on their faces. But it worked well, and the young cast was full of energy and commitment.

The easy storyline was perfectly pitched for the audience (mainly young girls, aged under eight). Angelina and her mouseling friends think their dreams have come true when Camembert Academy wins the chance to appear on the television show, Dancing With Mice. But the girls, Alice, Gracie and Viki, and the boys, AJ and Marco, have very different idea for the show and can’t agree on anything. Should it be hip-hop, or should it be ballet?

It’s up to Angelina, played by Georgina Carling, to make sure the show goes ahead. She gets a bit stressed when things don’t go right (Angelina that is, not Georgina), but it all works out in the end.

The stage was simple, yet colourful, and all the mouselings, Angelina included, helped to shift the props, while singing at the same time. There was a nice touch at the end when eight young dancers from Miss Hannah’s School of Dance at Chapel Haddlesey, near Selby , joined the mouselings for the closing act.

My seven-year-old, Zara, loved every minute of the show, dancing and clapping along. “It was very exciting. The dancing was brilliant and the songs were fun ”. High praise indeed.

• A 2.30pm matinee performance takes place today, but the 6.30pm show has been cancelled.

Review by Simon and Zara Ritchie, aged seven