There is something almost magical about the way a carefully crafted work for the stage can sweep a person up, transporting us somewhere extraordinary before releasing us back into the world, enriched and enlightened by the experience. Often this theatrical sorcery is the sum of many parts; a cast of actors, clever lighting design, sets, costumes and sound effects. But occasionally a production comes along that is so viscerally supercharged that it can grab hold with nothing more than an idea. Every Brilliant Thing is a show such as this, offering one of the most superbly observed explorations of mental health and human emotion I have ever witnessed on stage, using nothing more than a single performer, a handful of musical excerpts and an inspired amount of audience participation.

The production’s title refers to a list of everything that’s wonderful in the world. Started in childhood, it begins with childish things like ice-cream, Danger Mouse and being allowed to stay up late. As the narrative progresses, the list matures to include the things we cherish in adulthood, like falling in love and waking up next to somebody. In isolation, this catalogue of simple pleasures would be unforgivably mawkish, but...