Preview: Peter And The Wolf, Wales Millennium Centre, Cardiff

What Sergei might have done next...

A new theatrical production of Prokofiev's Peter and the Wolf, narrated by Brian Blessed, expands the work into something that will allow the audience more time to bond with the characters. It took time to overcome legal hurdles with the composer's family, but now even Prokofiev's grandson Gabriel, also a composer, has been involved in the rehearsal process.

The production was the brainchild of Anne Geenen, who has devised and directed the new show, extending it from the 28-minute orchestral work to a full show, complete with a new Act I, which lasts 40 minutes.

In this "prequel", Peter embarks on a field trip with his classmates to learn about plants and leaves. He engages with the cat, bird and duck, who each tell him of a problem, such as sibling rivalry in the cat's case.

Providing a seamless move into the original Prokofiev work has been a difficult task for the composer Philip Feeney, whose job it was to compose the Act I music. It's performed by the Philharmonia Orchestra, who also recorded the music for the Oscar-winning animated short film, Peter and the Wolf.

Whereas Prokofiev constructed his piece to introduce young listeners to the instruments of a classical orchestra by representing each character with a different instrument, this new version links each location to a musical theme.

"It was pretty challenging," Feeney says. "We wanted to create something that was going to sit alongside the Prokofiev, but we tried to make sure that we didn't do a tune by animal and didn't share any of the melodic material." He recently composed Hamlet for Northern Ballet Theatre, and has collaborated with the choreographer, Didy Veldman, on Greymatter for Rambert Dance Company.

"When you hear the horns, you are in the forest. There are sleigh bells that make little insect noises, and a spring drum, or thunder tube, which, when shaken, makes a lugubrious rolling sound that's perfect for sounding like the wolf's just round the corner."

4 & 5 April (0870 040 2000)