A ripping musical romp

The publicity material for this show tells no lies when it boasts of a "musical romp".

For although the top-hatted, be-caped silhouette of the Ripper flaps menacingly over proceedings from time to time, Ron Pember and Denis de Marne's 1974 piece is largely a Victorian music hall knees-up, of the sort that Chas and Dave might have enjoyed round the old Joanna at the end of the 19th century.

It's certainly a pint-spiller of a knees-up, with 12 actors, one pianist, an onstage platform and a generic Victorian streetlight all vying for space in the tiny playing area.

Despite such constriction, director/choreographer Tim McArthur manages to get his jaunty lowlives, including Janine Hales's stand-out Annie, to flash a fair amount of petticoat as they go about earning the fourpence that will secure them a bed for the night.

In the quieter moments, the Ripper legend interestingly sheds its customary aura of ghoulishness and becomes, alongside unemployment, homelessness and alcoholism, just another way of highlighting the fragility of an existence on the margins of society. But when there are this many singalongs, time for sober reflection on London's ills is necessarily limited.

Until 22 December. Box Office: 020 7287 2875.

Jack The Ripper - The Musical