It is 20 years since Playboy of the West Indies first lit up the Tricycle stage with its exuberant energy, and the rum-fuelled warmth of this revival provides the perfect antidote to bleak winter evenings.
As the title suggests, JM Synge's 1907 Irish classic The Playboy of the Western World has taken a long boat ride. Playwright Mustapha Matura has transposed the action - yet remained utterly faithful to the story - from the wilds of County Mayo to an equally remote rural village in 1950s Trinidad, a community that lives for rum shorts and tall stories.
It is here that imperious young Peggy works in her father's liquor shack cum general store, and we intuit straight away from Adrianne Lobel's attractive, evocative set of painted wooden slats topped by palm trees that Peggy's world is convivial yet claustrophobic.
So when a handsome stranger bursts in claiming that he has killed his tyrannical father, it is no surprise that Peggy does her utmost to ensure that this source of much-needed excitement stays around.
Report of the fascinating new arrival spreads fast and Ken soon has an enrapt audience of women hanging on his every utterance, much to the dismay of Peggy's pusillanimous fiancé Stanley.
Like Synge's famed words, "rich as a nut or an apple" as he called them, Matura's dialogue sings, although a liberal sprinkling of patois and strong accents may limit audience appreciation here.
Nicolas Kent's spirited production sails along until the third act, when the ending's tragicomedy mislays its tragi and is played excessively for laughs.
Beyond the absurdity, Synge had an important point to make about the chasm between the vicarious thrill of gossip and harsh reality, and much more should be made of this.
From a uniformly excellent company, Sharon Duncan-Brewster deserves praise for her Peggy; it is a wonderful moment when the suspicion lifts momentarily from her face and she smiles trustingly. Tracey Saunders and Remi Wilson make a fine pair of swooning, giggling village girls and Kobna Holdbrook-Smith's Ken visibly grows in stature as his daredevil exploits are marvelled over. Excepting that concluding caveat, highly recommended.
Until 22 January. Information: 020 7328 1000.
Alastair
Playboy Of The West Indies
