Manchester Opera House, Until Saturday

TIM Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber's musical is a timeless classic that isn't dulled by the passage of time.

This latest version, directed by Bill Kenwright, may lack the big name star or the slick production of the West End, but it will nonetheless delight audiences of any age.

New Zealander, Glen Drake takes centre stage as Joseph, more in the mould of Jason Donovan than Philip Schofield.

Drake maybe a little wet in the lead role -- you almost wish his brothers had killed him instead of selling him to slave traders -- but carries the part well enough.

Show stealer is Trevor Jary as the Pharoah King of Rock'n'Roll, with white jumpsuit and Elvis quiff to match.

The majority of the young audience might not have a clue who Elvis Presley is, but his interplay with Joseph as he struggles to interpret his dreams had them squealing with delight.

If you don't know the story of Joseph, it tells the tale of Jacob's favourite son, who can read dreams and is convinced he is destined for greatness.

All this starts to get his 11 brothers annoyed, and when Jacob gives Joseph a coat of many colours, that is the last straw.

They plot to kill him, but instead sell him to passing slave traders, who in turn sell Joseph on to an Egyptian merchant, Potyphar.

When Lloyd Webber and Rice began writing this musical more than three decades ago, little could they have realised that audiences in the 21st Century would still be enthralled by the classic 'Any Dream Will Do', 'Jacob and Son', 'Close Every Door' or 'One More Angel In Heaven'.

Perhaps the comedy of the 1970s is a little lost on the audience of 2001, but already there is a new generation of fans being introduced to the show.

One boy, who must have been no older than four, sat mesmerised by the show. He may not have known the words or the tunes -- and at one point even asked his mother where Dr Dolittle was -- but he sang along all the same, and enjoyed every second of it.

That is the magic of Joseph, but that would have made for a very short performance -- Joseph rises through the ranks, but when Potyphar finds him in an incompromising clinch with his scheming wife, he is thrown into jail to rot.

The Pharoah, who is being troubled by dreams of his own, calls for Joseph's help, who, in turn, saves Egypt from famine. Greg Nixon