Having never taken Max to see an orchestra, I was of course unsure of how he would fare. He's a huge fan of interactivity and pantomimes. But I shouldn't have worried at all. His theatre experiences so far have given his fantastic etiquette and he sat beautifully and was captivated throughout. He's fascinated by instruments so we spent the time sat in the theatre talking through all of them and discussing what sounds they made etc.

The show itself was split into two halves, the first one being a story telling by the enigmatic Pui Fan Lee (who many know from Cbeebies) of the age old tale of the Nutcracker. Whilst it was a slightly different version to the one I know and love, it was one that had Max sat up in his chair in awe of the sounds coming from the stage. She was the perfect narrator for all the little ones in the audience as she definitely has a way of capturing imaginations.

After a brief interval, which was spent googling instruments for Max to sit in awe over (I'm not kidding!) we were ready for the main event. With a huge screen for the film to be projected on, we snuggled down in our seats and the lights dimmed.

As soon as the opening few bars happened, you could tell it was going to be a magical event. Conductor Hugh Brunt did an amazing job at keeping the orchestra tight and hitting exactly the right notes that we know and love from the original score. There was something even more magical about hearing each and every layer of the orchestra as you watched the film, to the point that there were times I didn't know where to look as watching them play was so captivating.

I can honestly say it was such a wonderful and magical experience that we will treasure and cherish for Christmases to come. Thank you Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra for a wonderful evening of Christmas magic and wonder. We can't wait to return and watch something else.