Stratford East’s lively Christmas offerings customarily supply enthusiasm aplenty but connoisseurs of pure panto and its pursuant pranks often struggle to feel sated. There’s always something that doesn’t feel quite right and makes one wish that tickets had instead been bought for traditional high jinx at the Hackney Empire. Hansel and Gretel looks to be heading down this familiar path, until a second-half change of heart has us “It’s behind you-ing” with merry abandon.

We all know there’s nothing like a dame and it first appears that there’s nothing like a dame here. Marcus Powell’s Caribbean-accented Stepmother isn’t so much evil as wary of hoodie-wearing teenagers and thinks a good day’s work wouldn’t hurt her boisterous step-children. We tentatively warm to Powell, despite his lack of outrageous costume changes and slop scenes, although anyone who has been to Hackney this year might find themselves thinking wistfully of Clive Rowe.

Writer Hope Massiah spices up the traditional brew of dark woods, tasty houses and evil witches with some fresh ingredients, if not any knock-out jokes. Grasping Squire Giles and his perky daughter Arabella are the new landlords of H and G’s family, and Yellow Bird and Monty Mole provide some appealing anthropomorphic company. A whole team of composers supplies the energetic, unmemorable songs, which everyone launches into with gusto.

Darren Hart and Natalie Best bounce about peppily as the title characters in Dawn Reid’s production, outwitting Josephine Lloyd-Welcome’s underwhelming Wicked, Wicked Witch of the Woods (“So wicked they named her twice”). Hansel gets a love interest; Gretel doesn’t but she does have a very nice frock. Cowering Father (Tony Timberlake) goes around hacking trees down, which we fear might lead to a lengthy lecture on carbon absorption. Thankfully it doesn’t. His logs don’t sell, so hopefully he’s learnt his lesson. Not a dazzling house of sweets, then, but a pleasant enough stroll in the woods.
Until 17 January. Information: (020 8534 0310, www.stratfordeast.com)