There’s no way to sugar coat this. This bawdy adult panto lives up to its R18 rating, and if you don’t find smutty innuendos, double entendres and grubby anatomical references in any way amusing it’s not for you.

Don’t say you weren’t warned.

That being said, I enjoyed this show way more than I had any right to.

It took a wee minute to acclimatise to the relentless below-the-belt humour, but soon there was the realisation that the best way to approach it was to be a good citizen and yell your lines at the actors when you’re supposed to.

Throbbin Wood (geddit? Boom-boom) is an X-rated take on the legend of Robin Hood, complete with characters whose names it’s probably best I don’t repeat. (Try switching the first letters of Friar Tuck’s name and you’ve got it in one).

The evil and lustful Sheriff of Frottingham (boooo! – Nigel Edwards), kidnaps the fair and lovely Maid Marian (yaaaaay! – Elizabeth Flatt) and whisks her away to his fungeon (not a typo).

Can our handsome hero Throbbin Wood (yaaaay! – Ricky Andrews) save the day with his Merry Men, or will it take a magic touch of the mischievous Fairy G (yaaaay! – Lyndal Ludlow) to restore order to the kingdom?

The sexual references come farced (not a typo) and furious.

It’s an old-school British comedy, in the vein of those naughty Carry On movies from the seventies.

The jokes are schoolyard grubby, obvious and clearly signalled, and the cast ham it up gleefully, in the expectation that the audience is up for a good old two-way roast, seasoned with expletives and dick references.

You might have heard it all before, but this may be the first time you’ve paid to hear it on a stage in Invercargill.

Serious theatre it’s not, but there’s a lot to like if you lower your sights and let yourself get sucked into the spirit of it. It’s the acceptance that chaos is erupting on the stage – some of it even scripted – that makes every little misstep a cause for celebration.

The awkward but enthusiastic music and dance interludes (“We’re Merry Men” sung to the tune of “It’s Raining Men”) are funny because they’re awkward and enthusiastic.

A big part of this production’s charm is its acknowledgement of its own ridiculousness.

The script is loaded with self-deprecating dialogue.

When Ricky Andrews ironically proclaims “the time has come to act”, you can only appreciate the absurdity of what he’s saying and laugh out loud.

There are plenty of knowing winks and some classic fourth wall-breaching improv by seasoned panto dame Darren Ludlow (Nanny Fanny), while Lyndal Ludlow is all gothic and polished.

Ian Reeves and the Edwards brothers are old hands at this stuff, and clearly relish the opportunity to do some sanctioned effing and blinding.

Elizabeth Flatt is a total trooper throughout, never breaking character despite the sexualized shenanigans of which she is so often the object.

She plays it for all its worth, pretty impressively, actually, and her combo with Ricky Andrews is really good. Yaaay!

The regular interventions of two Imperial Stormtroopers from Star Wars are abstract yet completely relatable additions to the medieval English landscape in which the play is set.

This being a panto, there are verbal cues the audience is trained to recognise and you have a duty to shout the appropriate lines lustily at the cast.

Silly Willy Ian Edwards has the best response to these.

I thought his comeback delivery was hilarious, every single time, and I'll probably be using it for weeks to come.

It seems incongruous to use the word moral when reviewing Throbbin Wood, but if there is one it's this: the more you as an audience member participates, the better the experience will be for everybody.

THROBBIN WOOD was written by Tom Whalley. Repertory Invercargill's production is directed by Jason Fraser and Nigel Edwards and is playing at Repertory House from 14-17 May.

Doors open 6.30pm, show begins 7.30pm.

CLICK HERE to book your tickets