Santa doesn’t usually fly into Dartford until he delivers his presents on Christmas Eve but this year he’s stopped off at The Orchard Theatre a month early to bring some festive cheer.

The theatre is hosting a musical adaptation of the movie classic Miracle on 34th Street until Saturday (November 29).

The warm narrative follows the kind, white-bearded Kris Kringle.

Following his arrival at Macy’s department store as the resident Father Christmas, he begins convincing the Big Apple - along with 6-year-old Susan Walker – that he really is Santa.

The show opens with a tuneful, full-cast performance of a New York Christmas Parade, and when Santa arrived on his sleigh, the children of the audience waved and giggled.

Sat among the younger spectators awaiting confirmation that Santa Claus does exist, I waited for the show to drag me feet first into the Christmastide. It took about 10 minutes.

After the festive street procession, the lights in the auditorium suddenly came on, this was slightly confusing and killed my initial festive feeling.

However, the simple stage setting offered an obvious location and although quite simplistic, scenery changes were effective.

Before the end of the first half, the toys of Macy’s sweetly came alive for a dance sequence, which was a lovely, unexpected feature.

The cast were all singing and dancing throughout and a stand-out character was kooky Mr Shellhammer, a Macy’s worker loaded with one liners and whacky behaviour.

Snow poured on stage for the cheery finale, and then over some of the audience, which added a festive edge - and hilarity for those who managed to dodge it!

Although the show catered more for children, it was a heart-warming production perfect for this time of year.

It has certainly signalled the start of Christmas.