Samuel Johnson noted that All's Well contained "many delightful scenes, though not sufficiently probable, and some happy characters, not new nor produced by any deep knowledge of human nature".

And alack, Dr Johnson was spot-on. The play has led directors to emphasise the morality tale of patriarchy and sexual deception, or camp them up in fairytale fashion, like Marianne Elliott's clever production at the National recently.

Even for the great stage trickster Shakespeare, All's Well is a hard one to make tolerably credible. A story in which a scorned Helena manages to seduce her unwilling husband Bertram without his knowledge, orchestrate a crucial clandestine exchange of rings and get herself impregnated by him, all in one night, is a big ask.

Dove's production is quick and mischievous, and at its strongest in capturing the light and darkness which dwell side by side in the play. So minor characters are given full scope, sniping, boasting and pointlessly outdoing one another.

Sam Crane's Bertram is played as a Prince Harry (of the Windsor variety), proud and immature with some military swagger on the side. Ellie Piercy as Helena has a lovely mixture of sweetness and cunning: enough to make you wonder what she sees in ghastly Bertram, but hey, that's the plot. 

My small co-critics relished James Garnon's Parolles, a goatee-bearded dupe, pop-eyed in blank horror when his schemes go wrong.  They thought the play was "fun", a sparing verdict, but after two-and-a-half hours of unfidgety behaviour as sweet to mine ear as anything Big Will wrote in the sonnets.

The play's the thing, but if you really must take your young spry to Shakespeare in London, the Globe's the place to start.