Baron Vordenburg’s Guide to the Paranormal is an odd, odd show. At its best, it wrong-foots you, with creepy characters and well-developed lore that challenges your beliefs about “normality”. At its worst, it’s a lengthy showcase of slightly tepid humour. But either way, there are particular moments you’re sure to remember.

The eponymous Baron Vordenburg is an Indiana Jones for the modern age, his khaki shirt complemented by practical walking trousers and a sturdy utility belt in place of the whip. He sports a subtly comedic German accent which, miraculously, never quite grows tiresome, and he’s here to teach us how to deal with vampires. But, as we discover, he hasn’t brought his projector… and so his “slides” will be presented by a pair of assistants, through the medium of interpretative dance.

Well, perhaps it’s more physical theatre. Whatever it is, it’s genuinely good – but it’s pitched here entirely for comic effect. The jokes turn largely on mischievous antics happening behind the Baron’s back, often including a reception-desk bell which, for reasons I didn’t fully grasp, they simply love to ring. With the right energy from the audience I could see this building up a comic head of steam, but on the day I attended it felt over-extended, pushing each joke past the point where the laughter had faded.

But it’s not laughter all the way. The Baron seems to exercise a strange hold over his scampering assistants, whom he treats in equal part as skivvies and as pets. And there’s a hint of unease in his demeanour, the suggestion his position might not be as secure as his practiced patter would have us believe. Sure enough, something happens; something that upends the tone of the show, and casts us into horror. The shift is jarring, as it’s meant to be, and answers many of the questions the Baron’s behaviour has half-formed in our minds.

There’s absolutely an interesting concept here, but for me, it didn’t quite land. Partly I just felt the humorous scenes each lasted a little too long, but the payoff also relies on overturning a worldview which I’d never truly bought into. The more we heed the Baron’s warnings, the greater the impact will be – yet the early scenes are specifically set up to make him a figure of fun. But still: he leaves us with a punchy finale, and a moral to carry back to the “normal” world.