LORD of the Flies, running at The Courtyard all next week, presents a short sharp wake-up call for all of us – a stark illustration of what can happen when society’s structure breaks down.

With a cast that mixes professional actors and Youth Theatre members, director David Durant has created a powerful piece of drama that quickly engages the audience’s attention and doesn’t let go.

Golding’s novel was published in 1954, but its exploration of the darkness man is capable of is as relevant today as it was in the post-war years.

In the original all the children who find themselves abandoned on an island following a catastrophic air crash, were boys, but here some characters are played by girls (with two companies, A and B, alternating) and last night Piggy, for example, was played by Isabel Harrison, giving another level and dimension to a character whose voice increasingly cries wisdom in the wilderness.

With all the adults dead, having been at the front of the plane as it nosedived on to the island, the children are on their own. While Ralph and Piggy call for rules, order and meetings, Jack – ironically the choir prefect and therefore, he thinks, a shoo-in for chief – has other ideas. A chasm opens up between the two groups, as Jack persuades many to join him in a life of hunting and rampaging across the island in search of ‘the beast’, the embodiment of the group’s fears.

As all semblance of order breaks down, Jack and Piggy find themselves the hunted and tragedy is inevitable.

Jack and Ralph are played by professional actors Jamie Bacon and Stanton Wright, and Youth Theatre members playing the other children. It’s a clever move, as they bring an energy and confidence that has clearly been infectious, resulting in a polished production that is genuinely moving, and very effectively reminds us of the need for kindness and a mutual respect.

As David Durant says, "I think it's a very very true picture of where we are," he says, adding that the moral imperative it contains must not be ignored. "We have to find a way to say 'whoa' and instil what's important in society. Lord of the Flies teaches us that without a saviour, a person to guide and monitor us it will get worse and worse. The inherent evil will invade, take over and destroy.”

Lord of the Flies runs at The Courtyard until Saturday, October 15. To book, call the box office on 01432 340555 or visit courtyard.org.uk