IT’S the Second World War, and US Army Air Forces squad Aron is based in the Mediterranean, from where its men fly dangerous bombing missions in an attempt to turn the tide of the conflict.

Sick of seeing his comrades dying and his superiors constantly upping the number of missions that must be flown before they will allow anyone to be discharged, bombardier John Yossarian (Philip Arditti) tries to persuade Colonel Cathcart (Michael Hodgson) that he’s done his bit and should be sent home.

When Yossarian’s pleas fall on deaf ears, he tries to convince the squadron’s doctor (David Webber) that he’s crazy. It sounds like a good plan, but of course, there’s a catch...

Yossarian doesn’t quite go to the lengths of sticking pencils up his nostrils and putting his pants over his head like Rowan Atkinson in Blackadder Goes Forth – maybe he missed a trick, as the undies do in fact come off during a nude scene at the end of the first act.

But just like Blackadder, Yossarian is destined to discover that war is madder than anything his own imagination could muster as he tries to plot his escape.

Northern Stage’s adaptation of Joseph Heller’s acclaimed novel, directed by Rachel Chavkin, is a funny, dizzying and sometimes confusing assault on the senses, with actors in multiple roles scurrying on and off the ingenious set – a large, period aircraft – and music, dance and sound effects all thrown into the madcap mix.

Stick with it, though – even at over three hours – because this is a wonderful satire, the themes of which still resonate, especially as we mark the 70th anniversary of the D-Day landings this week.

The performances are excellent – a couple of not so authentic Italian accents aside – with Simon Darwen showing amazing versatility in reeling off three quite different characters in a matter of seconds, and Geoff Arnold impressing as the meek, falsely accused chaplain in an interrogation scene that made the Salem witch trials seem fair and reasonable.

Catch-22 is a bold and ambitious piece of theatre. Catch it while you can – you’d be crazy not to!

  • Catch-22 runs until tomorrow night. Tickets here>>