Children's play «Chú bé người gỗ – Pinocchio» («Pinocchio, the Wooden Boy»)

   Every child knows the story of the wooden boy whose nose grows each time he lies. But reading it or watching the cartoon is one thing; seeing a puppet actually move, speak and answer back a few metres from your seat is quite another.

   The production is adapted from the classic by Carlo Collodi — a book first published in 1883 and since translated into most of the world's languages. The theatre gives its staging a subtitle that states the focus plainly: «the dream of becoming a real person». This is the familiar story retold with more feeling and brought closer to life as it is lived today — less a cautionary fairy tale than an account of a child learning to answer for what he does.

   The Vietnam Youth Theatre was founded in 1978, has around 175 performers and belongs to ASSITEJ, the international association of theatres for children and young audiences. Work for young audiences has been its core business for decades, and for many Hanoi families this stage is where a child sees their first play.

   It is built for families: children follow the plot because they already know the characters, and the adults with them are not simply waiting out the running time — the staging has pace and room to laugh. If you are looking for an outing with your child that does not involve a screen, a theatre is one of the few options left.

   The theatre's September playbill leaves Pinocchio a single evening — there is no second date this month. It is an evening performance rather than a matinee, which is worth weighing if your children are very young. Doors open an hour before the start.

   The performance is in Vietnamese. The story is known worldwide and the theatre's children's productions carry a great deal of music, movement and visual staging — the action can be followed without catching every line.

   Tickets through the theatre's website. Seats per performance are limited, so book ahead.