THEY say that the sign of a good show is when you go home and sing the songs - or rather, you try to.

Luckily, there's a thick wall between me and my next door neighbour, so she couldn't hear me slaughtering the score of West Side Story.

Sale and Altrincham Musical Theatre were much better at the singing and dancing game, as anyone who saw their fabulous production will testify.

The show at Altrincham Garrick, had everything, from sexy, sassy choreo-graphy to charismatic principals and cultured acting performances.

As far as musicals go, West Side Story is no spring chicken but in the hands of SAMT it feels like it was written this year.

Indeed, Trafford's amateur operatic groups are highly adept when it comes to breathing new life into the old favourites.

Now for the performances. I don't want to use the word "best" because that implies there are some bad ones and that simply isn't the case.

Even the relatively minor roles are played by highly accomplished actors. It leaves you wondering if circumstances had been different, how many of them would be earning good money for what is now their hobby.

Jeff Harpin and Helen Blake are something of a dream team as the doomed lovers, Tony and Maria. The chemistry between the two is strong you'd need ten men to pull them apart. I would put money on them to work together again.

Equally impressive are Des Renshaw as Tony's street gang sidekick Riff and Neil Fallon as Maria's brother, Bernado. Tall and with a bald head, Fallon cuts a distinctive figure on stage and he injects just the right amount of menace into the role of Maria's streetwise sibling.

The best non singing, non dancing role is played by William Mees as the hard boiled policeman Lieutenant Schrank, a man on a mission to "clean up" the neighbourhood.

He's accompanied on the beat by Officer Krupke, a cop who doesn't exactly inspire confidence.

The score ranges from the roof raising America to the goose pimple inducing Maria and the wickedly witty social anthem Gee, Officer Krupke. Unmissable entertainment. Rick Bowen