A MAGICAL wonderland will enchant audiences when the multi-award winning, Slava’s Snowshow, returns to the Lowry, Salford Quays, tonight.

A combination of theatrical clowning and stunning visual spectacle, Slava's Snowshow is performed by a world-renowned company of clowns led by Slava Polunin, artistic director of the St Petersburg Circus.

Although without dialogue, Slava’s Snowshow has captivated audiences around the world since it was first performed over 20 years ago.

Slava said: “The show embraced all my favourite topics and items. Many things in the show come from childhood memories, like the image of snow, for example.

“Our show is not only different year from year, it is different every time, because it allows room for improvisation.

“I try my best to prevent the artists in the company from knowing who is playing who until the last moment. I also try to set up some unexpected things. That way improvisation becomes very natural and the show remains full of life.”

Slava, who grew up in a small town in Russia, was first inspired watching Charlie Chaplin in the film The Kid, and went on to study at clown school in his homeland.

He has become one of the most respected theatrical clowns in the world and his Snowshow is far removed from the clowns most of us associate with a touring circus.

“When the circus had lost its poetry and started to prefer technology and tricks, the clowns left the circus for cinema, theatre or street performance,” he said. “And there they obtained their freedom and their own space. They stopped filling the gaps between circus numbers and became the masters if not of the entire show, than of its important part.”

Slava, who has also worked with Cirque du Soleil, loves the way Snow show connects with its audience and he had some tips on what newcomers to the show can expect.

He said: “I think that in the first place one should expect a journey into childhood. Into your own childhood sparkling with your dreams, into mine - covered by the snowy blanket, into ours – filled with anticipations and dreams.

“It’s a trip into the world of bright colours, true feelings and important small details, that one only notices when little. In any case, each person sees his (or her) own story in the show, his own world. This is very important to me.”

Very much a family show, Slava is keen to encourage adults to immerse themselves in the production.

He said: “The main part of the theatre audience for us are always grown-ups.

Children are already a happy crowd of people, they haven’t yet touched the troubles of life, and the entire world is open and boundless. Imagination and joy fills them if they are not in a challenged social situation.

“Adults, however, often make themselves very rigid, complicate things, and start digging deep into the convolutions of life as soon as they grow up even a little bit.

“And yet, if you stay connected to your inner child, everything becomes so much easier and jollier. This is what we try to do.”

One of the highlights of the show is the snow itself which carpets the stage and creates an otherworldly atmosphere.

But what is it?

“It is a huge secret,” he said. “It is a special kind of paper that doesn’t burn. The size of each flake is precisely calculated in the way so that they float downwards in a very special way.”

Slava’s Snowshow, the Lowry, Salford Quays, until Saturday, October 29. Details from 0843 208 6005 or www.thelowry.com