It’s been more than 20 years since movie goers were first introduced to prisoner number 37927, Andy Dufresne.

In that time Steven King’s enduring tale of injustice, desperation, and above all, hope, has become one of the most cherished films ever made, regularly topping lists of the nation’s favourites - including mine.

So it was with a degree of skepticism that I took my seat for the theatre adaptation of The Shawshank Redemption.

The story is re-told with former EastEnders heartthrob Paul Nicholls taking the lead role as the wrongfully imprisoned lawyer, who is serving a double life sentence for two murders he did not commit.

During his 20-year incarceration, preyed upon by a group of inmates known as The Sisters and manipulated by Warden Stammas (Jack Ellis), Andy quietly hatches a desperate plan for freedom.

As in the film, the play’s charm is found in the friendship he strikes up with fellow inmates, namely Red, played by Ben Onwukwe, elderly prison librarian Brooksie (Andrew Boyer), who struggles with life on the outside, and young convict Tommy (Nicholas Banks), who holds the key to Andy’s freedom.

It is certainly faithful to the big-screen adaption of King’s novella and the stage show benefits from the same stirring monologues. Nicholls is masterful is his portrayal of Andy, while Onwukwe dominates the stage for those powerful soliloquies.

But the brutalities of prison life – and there’s no shying away from those – are also balanced against a script that delivers welcome laughter too, hardly surprising when you consider it was adapted for the stage by two stand-up comedians.

And where the show does make its departures, we also find out a little more about what has brought the other inmates to be behind the bars of the notorious penitentiary.

Don’t get me wrong, it is in no way a case of a tribute act outshining the band. But for me The Shawshank Redemption is everything you can hope for from a successful adaptation - a respectful nod to everything that makes the film the uplifting triumph that it is, but with enough to compel you look at the story with fresh eyes.

The show is billed with the promise of bringing King's story to a whole new generation of audiences. But while I doubt many in the theatre were experiencing the prison drama for the first time, you can’t say that we weren’t all held captive by it, all the same.

The Shawshank Redemption is at the Marlowe Theatre in Canterbury from Monday, September 12, to Saturday, September 17.

Tickets, from £18, are available from the box office on 01227 787787, or at marlowetheatre.com.