Is it panto? Dunno. Don't care. Unlike Mother Goose at the Gaiety, Twink's new show is short on conventional genre elements (e.g. glittering sets, stock characters, plot . . .), but as entertainment it yields nothing to the competition.
Its star, Twink, has stripped out the irrelevancies and put her trust in youth. Rockinson Crusoe doesn't dip in and out of contemporary youth culture; relying on young teens and preteens both as performers and as an audience with ticket-buying clout, it jumps right in.
The payoff is energy and wit that's perhaps more native to a schoolyard or the top deck of a Tallaght-bound bus than to the stage. The touchstone is Dustin, the TV turkey: if you like his abusive wit and fart jokes, book now for Rockinson Crusoe, because Dustin is everywhere, setting a hilarious, slightly chaotic tone with his non-sequiturs and songs like I'm Too Sexy for a Builder.
Rockinson Crusoe, much more a variety show than a play, is set in the here and now, and from the start its colour schemes, techno-tinged music and popping choreography tell us we're in MTV country.
Evidently it's too late to make a plea for live singing in our theatres. As at the Gaiety, the amount of lip-synching (and beak-synching) here is out of control entirely. But, that gripe aside, you can hold the "turkey" headlines: Twink, Dustin and their cast of dozens are on a winner.
Plays until January 21st, at various times. To book, phone: 01-6777744.