Honolulu Theatre for Youth opens its new season with a permanent home, a new artistic director and a new production of an old classic, "Winnie the Pooh."

The "Pooh" stories begun by A.A. Milne in the 1920s were inspired by the writer's wife and young son, Christopher Robin, who became a central character and sidekick to the irrepressible brown bear. So it's historically fitting that the HTY stage adaptation of Pooh's adventures by Le Clanche du Rand springs from a family setting.

Dad (Hermen Tesoro Jr.), Mom (Emily Tam), and Grandma (Cynthia See) are gathered after dinner in an appropriately period parlor. Christopher Robin (Chi Ho Law) is understandably bored in his last hour before bedtime, so the family makes up stories using his collection of stuffed animals as puppets and principal players. And Christopher Robin is delighted to be included as a character in the spontaneous adventures.

Directed by Eric Johnson, the production borrows a few techniques from Japanese bunraku puppetry to help enliven the animals. This requires the actors to be dressed in black, occasionally using rods to move the puppet's arms and legs, and sometimes tripling up as puppeteers to bring the semblance of life to an otherwise inanimate object.

The approach brings mixed success.

Because it requires the performers to disappear into their puppet characters, the HTY actors are listed in the program only as their character's voice. Their initial appearance as family (we presume their relationships) causes some confused focus until we realize that they are primarily puppeteers whose character roles take a distant second place.

Set, costumes, and lighting are dark and gloomy — helping the actors to disappear, but causing the audience to peer into a shadowy living room, with only a small spotlight to direct our attention on the puppet.

The puppetry works best when the physical action is the most expansive, such as Pooh flying up into the air with a helium balloon and tumbling back to earth when it pops. But it can also result in too many puppeteers crowding the picture, as when it takes three actors to help Pooh climb the hall tree that stands in for an oak.

The real test is whether the stuffed animals come to life.

The best moments result when Tesoro's Pooh interacts with See's Eeyore concerning the donkey's lost tail. For at least a short time, we focus on Eeyore and Pooh and not on the production concept.

This production of "Winnie the Pooh" starts with an interesting concept but offers too few moments of real charm to make it a genuine success.