Suave, urbane and adept at switching guises, he’s been successfully fleecing unattached females on the French Riviera, but now there are rumours of a new kid in town – and Lawrence finds himself in competition with coarse newcomer Freddy Benson (Rufus Hound) for the wealth and affection of Christine Colgate, a naïve, ready-to- be-duped Midwesterner with money to spend.
Hound’s Freddy is all deceptive awkwardness and successfully gets away with some physical jokes in somewhat questionable taste, and Samantha Bond lends last-chance elegance as a lonely, older Brit who finds a genuine admirer.
And John Marquez is good comic value as Lawrence’s sidekick, a corrupt French chief of police with an OTT accent, while Katherine Kingsley’s supremely confident Christine threatens to steal the show whenever she sings.
The whole silly – but enjoyable – business is happily kept afloat with some satisfying twists and turns in the battle between the rival fraudsters, and, with its plush sets, Jerry Mitchell’s pleasing production of this 2005 Broadway success looks very much at home in this equally-attractive theatre.
When: Until November 29
Where: Savoy Theatre, Savoy Court, Strand, London, WC2R 0ET
Ticket prices range from £24.50 – £67.50 (more for premium seats). Click here to book
