So how have Sinatra's gang of misbegotten rascals made it to London's West End? Well actually, they haven't: Joey Bishop and Peter Lawford have conveniently fallen off the tailgate of history, and we're left with Frank Sinatra (Stephen Triffitt), Dean Martin (Mark Adams) and Sammy Davis Jr (George Long), who's still the butt of most of the jokes - in that, at least, the show stays faithful to reality.
Mostly, these boys are here to belt out old favourites: however unhip the 1950s appear now, Dino, Davis and Ol' Blue Eyes still retain plenty of class. The singing is great, even if the delivery is rather light, and Triffitt, in particular, has a nice way with the Sinatra growl, but there's no mystique here.
These are actors, not legends. The impromptu wisecracks from the Rat Pack's stints at the Sands Casino in Las Vegas are obviously scripted and there's something about the
prim rows of a theatre audience (as opposed to a smoky Vegas crowd) that just feels wrong.
That said, it is great fun, with the cast-iron guarantee of some great tunes: Fly Me To The Moon, That's Amore and so on. But this show's an oddity: Stars In Their Eyes with a dash of Marx brothers thrown in.
Go easy on the comparisons, and you'll have a good time.
Until May 24, Theatre Royal Haymarket, Haymarket SW1, Mon to Sat 8pm, Thu mats 3pm, Sat mats 4.30pm, £12.50 to £37.50. Tel: 08709 013 356. Tube: Piccadilly Circus
The Rat Pack: Vegas Spectacular
