THE myopic lollipop man who  risks lives every time he helps  the pupils cross the street is  the only thing that’s short-  sighted a bout the revival of  Our Day Out.

Modernised and extensively  reworked from Willy Russell’s  original script, he and  co-writer Bob Eaton have remained true to its roots while  creating an all-singing,  all-dancing spectacular.

The cast of 27 young performers, many of school age, put  on a show actors twice their  age would be proud of. It’s  pacy, funny and tightly executed, thanks to Eaton’s attention  to detail in the directing and  choreographer Beverley Norris-Edmunds’s ambitious routines.

And beneath the pizzazz  are moments of bitter truth  that make this much more  than a feelgood night out.

Thanks to the intervention  of the disapproving Mr Briggs  (Mark Moraghan) the progress class’s annual day trip  has been diverted from Alton  Towers to Wales ­ –  a coach journey that involves all the fights for the back seat and sharing sweets that we can all remember from our school days.

And of course the singing –  written as half-playground  chant, reminiscent of Kids’  Game from Blood Brothers.

There are also big, blousey  musical numbers that take the  characters off the coach and  into their imaginations, such as the bittersweet I’m In Love With Sir when Carlene (Abby Mavers) is swept off her feet by the victim of her pupil- teacher crush (Stephen Fletcher) in a Hollywood dream sequence.

Pauline Daniels is lovely as  Miss Kay, the teacher trying to  bring a bit of light into the  children’s shadowed lives;  Moraghan a fierce Mr Briggs,  whose enlightenment may  have to wait for another day;  and Fletcher, Georgina White  and Kieran Cunningham  strong in their supporting  roles.

But it’s the young performers who have the power  to make or break the  show. Sinead Thompson and  Kelly Forshaw are perfectly in  unison as the perpetually  bored best friends, permanently attached to one another like a two-headed mythical creature in school blazers; while Chris Mason is a perfect balance between teenage swagger and embarrassed little boy.

But it’s Mia Molley’s sad  eyes that haunt you as you  leave the theatre – in her role  as Amy, the girl who wants to  stay on the Conwy cliffs for  ever, simply because “it’s nice”.

That’s what Russell does  best – draws you in with clever lyrics and swanky  numbers before bowling you over  with a bit of realism.

It’s three decades since the first production of Our Day Out, but many young people still feel cheated by the cards life has dealt them