Part panto, part fantasy, Through The Wormhole is as mad as a box of frogs.

The stage creation of writer, composer and visual artist Eleanor Gamper, it conjures up a crazy, cosmic Brighton where anything is possible.

Set in the future, with a cast of 24 people-plus puppets, magical sets and costumes and a live soundtrack Though The Wormhole combines global disaster with acts of individual heroism, Einstein with disco dancing, magic with quantum physics, characters from local history with aliens from outer space, petty crime with global greed and, of course, a giant worm.

"I call it pantasy," explains Eleanor, who is also New Venture's assistant artistic director.

"It's a seasonal show so we've called it panto - but don't let that put you off. I like to tell people"

"It's not Puss In The Wood And The Seven Ugly Eastenders' or Mother Whittington And The Forty TV Weather Presenters." I'm not a fan of traditional panto. This is completely original, completely different and probably a bit barking."

It was all dreamed up one drug-addled night, she explains. "I was very ill, suffering from back pain and up to my eyeballs in painkillers. The story started with a drawing and evolved from there."

Plot-wise, it couldn't be more surreal. It's the 22nd Century and the world is in the grips of a second Ice Age. Sent to Brighton by his old mum to seek work, reluctant hero, Terry Botch, ends up at a dodgy call centre run by aliens, takes lodgings with a peculiar pair of sisters, and finds himself travelling through time and space on a mission to save the city from frozen doom. In the process he meets up with a very odd bunch of characters.

Locals are bound to find humour in the familiar faces and places which feature in the show - albeit with a surreal twist. Characters like the prehistroric cavewoman whose name is Jawbone cross reference glamour girl Jordan, while King Alfred is a cross between the local leisure centre and a 9th-Century king. The Palace Pier kiosk which recently tumbled into the sea is also resurrected and transformed into a time machine.

"I've got a rather crazy mind," says Eleanor.

"I love the serendipity of one idea leading onto another. January is generally a very gloomy month and can make people terminally depressed," she continues.

So for anyone feeling the winter blues, Through The Wormhole is the pefect antidote.

"It's a hilarious, very entertaining show."

Starts 7.45pm, Sat and Sun mats 2.30pm. No show Sun eves or Mon. Tickets cost £6-£8.50.Call 01273 746118