Allo Allo - Sale and Altrincham Musical Theatre

Wayne Holt as Rene by Derek Stuart Cole.

WHEN Allo Allo was on our TV screens it passed me by just how good the BBC sitcom actually was, with a script full of quick wit and the perfect amount of sauciness.

To me at a time when I was hooked on new comedy it struck me as old school and something you’re parents or even grandparents would enjoy.

After sitting through this flawless production by SAMT I’m more than happy to count myself as a convert.

Director Ed Prophet must have thought all his birthdays had come at once as the first rehearsal got under way with every cast member displaying a sense of comic timing that would certainly not be out of place on a professional stage.

It feels wrong to single out individual performances for critical praise for there simply aren’t any bad ones from a cast determined to make us laugh in these troubled timmes.

Wayne Holt is a natural Rene, the hen pecked cafe owner who dreams of a romantic getaway with his pouting and sexy waitress Yvette, played to perfection by Emma Rostaig. Together they make for the perfect double act.

The setting for the stage version revolves around an establishment run by Rene in France in Second World War and this establishment is equally as popular with German officers as it is with the locals and everyone gets into a right state when it appears Hitler himself is due to visit the area.

But the plot isn’t primarily why you should primarily by tickets for this perfectly paced comedy. Its to enjoy the exploits of the buttoned up Gestapo oficer Herr Flick played by Joe Farina and Private Helga Greenhart as they try to forge a romantic relationship with one another. The scene in which Helga tries to seduce him in some sexy underwear is particularly hilarious.

One of the characters who I do remember from the original TV show - apart from Rene and Yvette and Rene’s dragon of a wife - was Officer. Crabtree was an English spy undercover pretending he could speak French. It was a role tailor made for the very tall Joe Vincent.

The intimate auditorium of Altrincham Little Theatre is the ideal setting for Allo Allo and I was certainly struck by how I felt a part of the ensuing chaos unfolding on stage.

I do hope this production sells out its run. Make ‘em laugh, the old saying goes. This is definitely a case of mission accomplished by a company dripping with talent.

Top quality theatre on your doorstep. You lucky people.

Until March 29. Tickets are available from samtheatre.co.uk.

Star rating - 5 out of 5.