DIRTY ROTTEN SCOUNDRELS

The 1988 film Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, starring Sir Michael Caine and Steve Martin, has now metamorphosed into a stage musical, starring Robert Lindsay and Rufus Hound. And it’s a curiously old-fashioned affair.

We’re on the French Riviera and two conmen – one suave, one rather oafish (no prizes for guessing which leading man plays which role) – are hard at work parting wealthy visitors from their valuables. For no better reason than the smoothly operating Lawrence Jameson has been here many times before and is getting a bit bored, he agrees to show the newly arrived and unsophisticated Freddy Benson the tricks of the trade and to engage with him in a few harmless bets.

There is much madcap fun, more than enough crudeness and a succession of wincemaking jokes.

In trying to spell the surname of an Austrian psychiatrist, for example, one character asks another whether she needs an umlaut. ‘No,’ he assures her, ‘you smell fine.’ And Freddy can make no reference to the opposite sex without enthusiastically grabbing his crotch. Indeed, at one point Lawrence observes that what Freddy lacks in grace, he more than makes up for in vulgarity. Spot on!

Enough of the gripes, though. The whole confection, beautifully lit, choreographed and dressed, looks good enough to eat. And the songs (music and lyrics by David Yazbek) are tuneful and witty, even if both Lindsay and Hound are not what you and I would truly regard as singers.

For me, the best moments of the evening are when Samantha Bond is on stage, with or without the deadpan chief of police (a droll John Marquez). Elegant and graceful, she can point up any line and extract the maximum juice from it; and she’s no slouch when it comes to singing and dancing.

The other big bonus comes in the shape of Katherine Kingsley, a leggy blonde with a fine pair of lungs, who plays the apparently innocent soap queen, Christine Colgate. We see another side of her in the closing minutes and very funny she is, too.

At heart, then, this is a good-natured, if undemanding, night out that may well find an audience.

Indeed, it would be a dereliction of duty if I didn’t report that the audience clapped like sea lions at the final curtain.

Until 29 November at the Savoy Theatre, Strand, London WC2: 0844-871 7627, www.atgtickets.com