"Charlie and The Chocolate Factory" by Nottingham Operatic Society.

Nottingham Theatre Royal.

Based on the 1964 book by Roald Dahl and features an original score composed by Marc Shaiman with lyrics by Shaiman and Scott Wittman and a book by David Greig. The soundtrack also pays homage to the Leslie Bricusse/Anthony Newley score from the 1971 film with songs from the film, which starred Gene Wilder as Willy Wonka, including "The Candy Man," "I've Got a Golden Ticket," "Oompa Loompa Song," and "Pure Imagination."

The world-famous Willy Wonka is opening the gates to his mysterious sweet making factory…but only to a lucky few. Young Charlie Bucket and four other golden ticket winners will embark on a life-changing journey through Wonka’s world of pure imagination including chocolate waterfalls, nutty squirrels and the great glass elevator, all to be revealed by Wonka's army of curious Oompa-Loompas.

Anyone who has seen any production by Nottingham Operatic Society will know the quality of their productions, and this very sensory show has the same level of professionalism as anything that you may have seen in the past from this group. In "Charlie and The Chocolate Factory" they bring that sweet smell of success - or was it chocolate - to the Nottingham stage?

There are two teams of young actors who play separate performances. The Purple team who perform on Wednesday evening, Thursday matinee, Friday matinee and Saturday evening, and then the Yellow team performing on Thursday evening, Friday evening and Saturday matinee. Wednesday matinee I saw the Yellow Team.

Charlie Bucket's role is shared by Henry Armstrong and Toby Clark with Toby being the young man that I saw this afternoon; Charlie took the stage on Wednesday evening, and knowing that the apple will not fall far from the tree, Henry will be just as brilliant as Toby was. The level of confidence and characterisation that Toby brings to the stage is wonderful to behold. With some child actors that I see in professional touring productions, you can tell, more often than not, that a stage school is involved. With this young cast there's not a sniff of that and all the young actors are so natural in their character presentation. His voice is very clear and that helps with the story telling and comedy within his songs and you can just tell that Toby is loving his time on stage. A new name to Nottingham Operatic audiences but you can tell that this young man is very experienced in musical theatre.

Mrs Bucket is played by Emma Shute. The chemistry that is seen between Mrs Bucket and Charlie is so lovely, and while Mrs Bucket isn't in the musical that much, Emma stamps her mark, not only with her vocals but also with bringing such a believable version of Mrs Bucket to the stage.

Willy Wonka is played by Dan Armstrong. there have been many versions of Wonka portrayed on the stage and in celluloid, from the darker Johnny Depp version to the almost nonchalant Gene Wilder portrayal. Dan seems to blend the best of both to the stage version. Over the years I've seen Dan play many roles over the years, so I know what an excellent character actor he is, and this laid back and slightly acidic version of the Chocolate Factory owner is just perfect. The vocals are stronger than ever as well.

Grandpa Joe, who accompanies Charlie to the Wonka Factory, is played by Simon Theobald, another actor who I've had the pleasure of seeing on many occasions and in many roles. Grandpa Joe is a lovely character which has bucket loads of character physicality attached, something that Simon is no stranger to presenting on stage.

Grandma Josephine is played by Alison Hope, Grandpa George is played by Antony Watson and Grandma Georgina is played by Rosie Poesl.

Augustus Gloop's role is shared by Thomas Owen and Seth Burgess alternatively. Seth is in Team Yellow, the team which I saw today. Seth is a young actor who I've reviewed on several occasions now through Nottingham Arts Theatre productions. It's not easy when a young actor has to maintain a specific accent, along with singing, acting and dancing, but Seth's portrayal of this sausage loving character is brilliant.

Mrs Gloop is played by Lucy Haigh. The role has great energy and I love the accent Lucy has with Mrs Gloop.

Veruca Salt's role is shared by Martha Crosby and Clara Carter; the Veruca that I saw perform today. Love the connection Veruca has with Mr Salt as she keeps him under her thumb, and I actually like this pairing of Bara and Clara better than the original screen pairing of Roy Kinnear and Julie Dawn Cole.

Mr Salt is played by Bara Erhayiem. You would not have recognised Bara if you hadn't have known that it was him, thanks to an excellent long wig, and another great accent. There's so much energy invested in this role by Bara and some clever choreography, especially when performing with his bossy stage daughter, Veruca.

Violet Beauregard's role is shared by Betsy Stevens and Grace  Hindle. There's a brilliant song that goes along with Violet's character called "The Queen Of Pop" - because she is always chewing gum and Grace blew me away with her sassy version of this song which could well have been a hit for an artist like Meghan Trainor. Violet and her Dad really seem to bring this musical bang up to date, keeping the show as fresh as ever.

Mr Beauregard is played by Ray McLeod. This man brings such rays of joy to the show especially with this ultra hip version of Violet's father. Love all the swagger and cool and yet another excellent piece of casting. Another thing that I applaud is the cleverness and observation of dressing Mr B in a wonderful violet coloured suit, highlighting the devotion to his daughter throughout. 

Mike Teavee's role is shared by Samuel Smith and William Kent. I absolutely love how Samuel played this role, bringing out the angry teenage gamer and TV fanatic. He has a very flexible range of expression in his face and really seems to live the role that he is playing - hopefully for his parents that if this is method acting he leaves Mike at their front door. I love all of the performances in this young group but I will admit that I've always been a fan of Mike Teavee. The part where he is atomised and sent through the air to appear in a TV set is magical to watch and is one of my favourite Wonka dispatches.

Mrs Teavee is played by Joanne Lale. Mrs Teavee is her son's biggest fan and backs him to the max. I know that I keep going on about characterisation, but every role in this show is a character and Joanne is a brilliant character actor, as shown as Mrs Teavee. 

Jerry Jubilee who is a reporter and News Anchorman is played by Charlie Evers and Cherry Sundae, the news anchor link, who just happens to be at exactly the right place for when those golden tickets are revealed, wherever they may be in the world, is played by Hannah Haywood-Cupitt.

Mrs Green, the lady who makes a living selling "pre-loved" vegetables from a shopping trolley, is played by the wonderful Linda Croston, complete with an irresistible Irish accent.

The brilliantly hard-working ensemble are made up of a "who's who" of local stage stars of Abby Wells, Adele Lee, Alexandra Hazard, Amanda Dixon-Smith, Arthur Jones, Christine Boothe, Craig Youngman, Daniella Anderson, David Hails, Emily Trappen, Emme Gunn, Evie Midgley, Laurel Jones, Louise Fiddes, Louise Johnson, Marcia Wood, Nathan Curzon, Nick Smith, Oliver Wheddon, Ruth Greaves and Shaun Hanrahan.

There are so many highlights in this production - I knew that there would be - but the Oompa Loompas are really something special and their costumes are a real surprise. The extra sensory addition leading up to the end of act one I am sure boosted the sales of chocolate bars in the interval, and the scene with the glass lift at the end of the show is pure magic, and is not left to the imagination. I know that it was not just the kids in the matinee audience were left open mouthed at this scene.

Directed and Choreographed by Justine Lee. I can not suitably describe just how good this production is and that is partly down to the wonderful Direction and the incredible choreography.

Rob Murray is the Musical Director and fronts up the gorgeously lush twelve piece orchestra.

Sound is by Michael Donoghue, and an excellent clear sound design and operation.

Lighting is by Tom Mowatt. Expected nothing but the best, and that's what I got. Follow spots are operated by Cathy Bodman and Simon Carter.

Production Manager is Zak Charlesworth.

The wigs are brilliant, making me really scrutinise the cast members to spot who they were. Lucy Haigh and Joanne Lale, who are also the Makeup Consultants, sorted this area of the production out.

The costumes are excellent with the Wardrobe Manager being Marion Fisher.

The scenery is also magical with the digital screens really bringing another dimension to the show and provided by Scenic Projects in Lowestoft.

Making sure everything ran smoothly behind the scenes onstage were the Stage Crew Andrew Burton, Ethan Hamblett, Matt Wesson, Neil Ledward and Thomas Gregory with the Stage Manager being David Price and Vicky Johnson, assisted by Matt Allcock.

So much talent is involved in this production, on and off stage, producing a show of the utmost quality and entertainment values; definitely not one to miss out on.

Did you know? Roald Dahl was inspired to write "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" during his time at Repton School, in Derbyshire! He and his schoolmates were sent chocolate to test from Cadbury's in exchange for their feedback, which gave him the idea of the eccentric Chocolatier.

"Charlie and The Chocolate Factory" is at the Nottingham Theatre Royal until Saturday 1 November. Put it on your bucket list to see this week. Don't miss out on your golden ticket!!