ŠElsewhere, there are performers dressed as chess pieces, newsmen looking for stories and, at the centre, the threeŠ main characters going through their individual stories. Mark Gardner is a powerful Trumper, the American, and Paul Kirkbright provides an emotional Sergievsky. Sarah Hardman-Gardner as the woman in the middle, Florence, also gets to sing the show's undisputed hit number, I Know Him So Well, with Samantha Arnold as Svetlana, Sergievsky's estranged wife.

ŠWhile the central performances are good, Šit Šis the chorus and incidental characters which really impress, vocally excellent and filling the Floral's stage to good effect.

ŠAdding an extra touch is the large video screen which provides background information, scenic views and live broadcasts from the stage.

ŠIf there is one quibble – and you generally get it with these operatic musicals – it is that it is not always easy to distinguish the words in the occasional battle between singers and orchestra.

ŠBut that and some first- night technical problems are minor compared to the sweep of a show that has quality and which proves, in this production, that Chess is not as difficult as many imagine.