THIS half-term, Cardiff’s Orbit Theatre are asking us to join Alex the Lion, Marty the Zebra, Melman the Giraffe, Gloria the Hippo and, of course, those hilarious, plotting penguins as they bound onto the New Theatre stage in the musical, based on the animated motion picture, Madagascar. 

The show follows the friends as they escape from their home in New York's Central Park Zoo and find themselves on an unexpected journey to the madcap world of King Julien's Madagascar.

Entertaining young and old with their banter, Joe Green, Andre Spring, Daniel Ivor Jones and Laura Phillips as Alex, Marty, Melman and Gloria are excellent as the main characters. 

The whole show entertains the whole family with everyone in the auditorium buzzing with excitement until the end of the performance.

Lewis Cook and Fran Hudd worked together really well as King Julian and Maurice lighting up the second half of the show while the penguins managed to steal every scene they were in.

Finally I must mention the students and lecturers at Coleg y Cymoedd who made all the fantastic costumes and puppets on stage.

Madagascar fans can continue to "Move It, Move It!" down to the New Theatre until Sunday June 4 to catch this fantastic family show.

Rachel Howells