The National Theatre of Scotland presents this energetic and spirited take on Scottish ballads.

A somewhat prim and old-fashioned literary scholar heads out in a blizzard to attend a conference. Stranded in a small town at a terrible pub she braves the snow and is tempted by the devil.

The play is performed without a stage, amongst the audience, in rhyming verse, mostly described and enacted rather than spoken by particular characters. It also includes some neat props and very good music.

The thing is, it seems that a play about storytelling would pay more attention to unfolding the narrative and actually telling a story. The story is the weakest link here, making the play itself pretty thin. The use of language is strong but the production never feels as entertaining as it should be.

The Strange Undoing of Prudencia Hart has received a lot of rave reviews but, for me, it fell short of excellence. The show is on at the WISE Hall until Feb 2nd at 8pm, including a Saturday matinee at 2.