NEVER having read Mark Haddon’s award-winning novel ‘the Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time’, I felt somewhat on back-foot at the Bristol Hippodrome last night.

However I need not have worried as the National Theatre’s production of Mark Haddon’s bestseller is mind-blowingly brilliant, whether you have read the book or not.

In brief, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time is about a 15-year-old boy with Aspergers Sydrome and how the discovery of a dead dog on his neighbour’s lawn has repercussions thorough his entire life.

The boy in question, Christopher Boone, is a complex individual brilliantly portrayed by Joshua Jenkins. When his Special Needs teacher, played by Geraldine Alexander, asks him to write a play about his attempts to discover who killed the dog , the audience is drawn into the workings of this very special young man’s mind.

Essentially, the set is little more than a black box, but the clever use of projections create different locations and images, helping to illustrate just how differently Christopher copes with life and everything it throws at him. The mathematical grid is the key to everything that goes on in Christopher’s head; from the stars in the sky to chaos of the tube station.

With the addition of Adrian Sutton’s electronic score, the overall effect is close to perfect.

There are many other brilliant supporting performances, with special mentions going to Stuart Ling as the father, and Roberta Kerr as the kindly teacher. Lucas Hare is also genuinely frightening as Roger Shears.

Energetic and stimulating, this play is a breath of fresh air.

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time is on at the Bristol Hippodrome until Saturday, August 8.