COLLEAGUES looked shocked when they discovered I have never seen nor, indeed, knew the story of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat before visiting Bath’s wonderful Theatre Royal for the opening night of this production.

But the two hour adaptation of Andrew Lloyd-Webber and Tim Rice’s classic musical was colourful, bright and thoroughly enjoyable.

Lloyd Daniels, the 2009 X-Factor finalist, was due to play Joseph but he was not able to take to the stage. Matt Brinkler, who has starred on the American reality show Rockstar Academy, was, though, a superb deputy.

Brinkler’s voice was powerful from the first note to the last of the keystone hit Any Dream Will Do, which started and finished the production.

For internationally acclaimed shows like Joseph, the story is well known by millions of people. However, the idea of just watching and listening and letting the fun unfold in front of the packed audience in Bath was my favoured way of witnessing it for the first time.

And for those who do not know the story of Joseph and his Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, it, basically, is a biblical tale of Jacob and his 12 sons. The multi-coloured garment is made for Joseph because Jacob loves him more than his other sons.

That brings bad blood into the family. Joseph is sold off to the Ishmaelites, who take him to Egypt. There, after spending two years in jail, he rises to greatness and, when the whole world arrived in Egypt to buy grain due to a global famine, he saw his brothers.

Joseph pretends to be a stranger. As he is so high-ranking in Egypt – he actually owns the place – his brothers bow before him in honour before he reveals to them that he is, actually, the man they sold. They reconcile and bond once more.

The music of this Bill Kenwright-directed production, though, is the real star and Brinkler and co did not let the traditions of a show, which has featured superstar Jason Donovan, down one jot.

Foremost was the excellent Matt Lapinskas, who played the Pharaoh whose dreams are interpreted by Joseph and, as such, bestows the riches of Egypt to him.

He appears on stage dressed not in an Egyptian outfit but as Elvis Presley and, with the struts and voice of The King of Rock and Roll, Lapinskas had the Bath audience clapping and cheer to every wiggle of his hips and pout of his lips. So much fun.

He went through his set of numbers – Pharaoh’s Song, Poor, Poor Pharaoh, Son of the King, Stone the Crows and King of my Heart – with hardly a note out of place.

And, when the full reveal to Joseph’s brothers is made, Kenwright has brought audience participation into his production with some of the cast filtering around the Theatre Royal stalls as the grand finale grew.

Lastly, the full company unveil the Dreamcoat – and Bath stood up to applaud, sing, clap their hands and acclaim an excellent performance of a classic musical.