When faced with any of Dickens’ major works, I don’t think I am alone in feeling a slight sense of trepidation at their sheer length and complexity. Pembroke Player’s Great Expectations, condensed into just over two hours, is an admirable effort with a mammoth task. While it’s clear there was some struggle with cutting, and something of Dickens’ characteristic complexity was perhaps slightly lost, the main storyline is strong and engagingly played out in an almost equally difficult space.

The decision to stage it completely in the round was a brave one, which for the most part paid off and was handled well, though something of the atmosphere of the wide marshes and bustling London city was inevitably lost. The sense of travel and movement was also hard to convey in such a limited space. A particularly good aspect of this was the further decision to have the cast play a kind of narrative chorus, speaking parts of Pip’s thoughts or Dickens’ narrative from outside the audience, or as they crossed over and around the stage. It gave a peculiarly intimate sensation of being inside Pip’s head, watching his memories play out in a small, picture-house room in his mind.

Pip himself was played with earnest endearment by George Booth-Clibborn, who admirably rose to the challenge of playing a character who goes from boy to man in a very short space of time. The scenes with Miss Havisham, played by Xelia Mendes-Jones with a compelling, fragile madness, were among the best in the show, though something was lost by the unfortunate weakness of the staging; Miss Havisham was not visible for some of the audience in the majority of her scenes.

The cast also featured some very versatile actors, despite some first-night stumbles over Dickens’ twisty language, as they played multiple parts as well as chorus members. Kirill Lasis deserves a special mention, playing both the proud Mr Wopsle and the bitter, creepy Orlick. However, the multiple parts did lead to some slight confusion, particularly the parts of Compeyson and Drummle, both played by Ben Stoll, who switched characters at one point without a handy costume change nor a lot of dialogue to indicate exactly which man he was portraying, though it did eventually become clear. Estella, played by Clara Strandhoj, was particularly good when confronting Miss Havisham, and Mrs Pumblechook (Hannah Short) also deserves mention for a delightfully nosey, fussy Victorian host who welcomed audience members to the show in full character.

Overall, it was an admirable effort, and worth seeing for any Dickens fan.