Jonathan Biggins and Phillip Scott’s irreverent update would surely have delighted Offenbach.

What happens when you invite half of the infamous Wharf Revue to get their hands on one of the jewels of French nineteenth-century operetta? Answer – a razor sharp, satirical romp that’s camper than a row of tents and twice as funny.

Offenbach’s glitter and be gay musical comedy has had more facelifts over the years than Joan Rivers and like poor old Joanie, not all of them have been entirely successful. Jonathan Biggins and Phillip Scott, however, who clearly love the work, have come up with a belter. They understand Offenbach’s aim: to lampoon the moral standards of the ruling classes, as seen through the eyes of the bourgeoisie (ie. the majority of his sizable audience). By a cunning plan of staying visually true to Ancient Greece ,as seen through nineteenth-century eyes, while adding a layer of topical, Australian humour, what we get is something like “a Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Sydney Opera House”.

Much of the evening’s pleasures lie in the scintillating word play of Biggins and Scott’s translation-cum-update. They have a knack for knowing when to tell you what Offenbach wanted...