IF, like me, you were slightly put off by the title of AAODS’s latest production and failed to pick up a ticket for Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, then you have sadly missed a little gem which breaks the mould of other modern musicals and transports its audience back to the almost lost days of musical comedy.

The plot is as old as time - two sharp con artists competing against each other to win the dosh and the dame, set against the steamy days and balmy nights of the French Riviera. The plot is happily counterpointed by lively song and dance numbers pastiching styles from the classic American song book to an Oklahoma hoe-down with even the odd ‘power ballad’ chucked in for good measure.

With Patrick Callaghan in the lead role as Lawrence Jamieson it appeared that the show was in safe hands from the opening finger click. This was a role which perfectly suited both his voice and acting style and he appeared to relish every moment as the urbane crook.

It was however, a shame that the overloud orchestra and poor sound meant that a lot of his, and indeed the entire show’s, throwaway lines were completely lost to the audience especially in the numbers where he interacts with the chorus. It may well be that the loss of some of the lines, which to sensitive ears could border on vulgarity was not entirely a bad thing but…

Playing opposite Patrick was Matt Bryant, who gave an energetic, if somewhat one dimensional performance as Freddy Benson. With the chance to explore several alter-egos it would perhaps have been nice to have seen a little more colour to the portrayal but you certainly can’t doubt the commitment or the effort.

Possibly this failure to explore the delicious deviousness and layers of the of the plot is something which permeates the whole show but somehow manages to do so without really detracting from the enjoyment of it.

Completing the trio at the heart of the production was Emma-Jane Morris as Christine who burst onto the stage in her AAODS debut with true style. Her opening number, Here I Am was terrific - although blighted again by that deafening orchestra. She without doubt has that rare talent - shared with Cecilia Bawler - of being able to pitch a throwaway line absolutely perfectly. For me, her line about fabric softener was the moment of the evening.

Completing the principal line up was Emily Harrington as the gun-toting heiress Jolene and the lovely pairing of Tobi Edwards as the bent police chief André and the aforementioned Cecilia Bawler as Muriel. Their duet Like Zis/Like Zat was another of the highlights of the evening and perfectly captured the easy charm of the style and the show.

The secret of Dirty Rotten Scoundrels is that at heart it is a show that plays with its audience and doesn’t take itself too seriously…a secret which the principals, who all appear to be having a ball, haven’t quite got through to the chorus, who for most part look dreadfully worried.

With the chorus work again marred by the volume of the both the orchestra and consequently the principals, it’s sometime difficult to catch exactly what was going on…but it what we could hear sounded and indeed looked good, so they really could afford to enjoy the performance as much as the audience did.

This was a show which saw AAODS on the way back after a couple of years in the doldrums,and all credit to the production team of Deborah Harrington, Andrew Protherough-Jones and Lisa-Marie Harris for pushing the boundaries. It’s a shame that ticket sales were disappointing because the show certainly isn’t.

•Dirty Rotten Scoundrels runs at the Borough Theatre in Abergavenny until Saturday and some tickets are still available.