Capturing the absolute sixties essence of the original film of The Graduate starring a very young and bashful Dustin Hoffman must have been a daunting task for Talisman Theatre Company director Tim Willis.

But he succeeded in putting on an enjoyable show with an excellent soundtrack - even if I was rather disappointed at the lack of the Simon and Garfunkel classic Mrs Robinson (which I had been humming to myself all day in anticipation).

Chris Smith's performance as Hoffman's character Ben was also disappointing, being a bit too clean-cut, confident and boy-band-esque for the role.

But Kate Willis played the seductive and uber-cool Mrs Robinson to a t, and the costumes and props did an impressive job in setting the mood of the crazy and carefree decade.

The power of long pauses in the film was somewhat lost as all actors in this production delivered their lines far too quickly for any comic or intriguing impact to settle in, and their American accents need practising.

Nevertheless, this show was a treat and will be sure to provoke lively conversation afterwards.

Sundari Sankar

Verdict: Intriguing sixties comedy