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Laughs come often in Camelot's 'Dirty Rotten Scoundrels' Erik Connolly, left, and Eoghan McDowell star as Lawrence Jameson and Freddy Benson, respectively, in Camelot Theatre's production of "Dirty Rotten Scoundrels." Photo by Steve Sutfin Saturday Sep 3, 2016 at 2:28 PM Sep 3, 2016 at 2:28 PM By Bill Varblefor the Mail Tribune Erik Connolly looks every inch the con man. In Camelot Theatre’s new production of "Dirty Rotten Scoundrels,” which opened Friday, Connolly’s Lawrence has the chiseled profile, the wavy hair and the expensive suits you’d expect of a grifter who preys on rich women at Beaumont-Sur-Mer on the French Riviera. Eoghan McDowell’s Freddy, in contrast, is a crass young American with tacky clothes and oafish manners. In a competition for the hearts and minds and bank accounts of well-heeled young women, it would seem to be no contest. The main object of all the chicanery is Christine Colgate, the “Soap Queen,” played with élan by newcomer Sabrina Hebert. And things quickly get complicated. Con men as subjects for stage plays go back to Molière and Ben Jonson and beyond. “Dirty Rotten Scoundrels” is linked not only to that tradition, but to a comic take of the battle of the sexes a la the screwball comedies of the 1930s. The 1988 movie comedy starred Michael Caine and Steve Martin, with Glenne Headly as the American heiress they target. Jeffrey Lane, who wrote the book, and David Yazbek, who wrote the music and lyrics, adapted the film into this lightheaded musical comedy, which hit Broadway in 2005. The plot remains essentially the same. Lawrence, the alpha swindler of the imaginary Beaumont-Sur-Mer, is alarmed to hear that a con artist known as The Jackal has entered his turf. Enter loud, gangly, dim-bulb Freddy. Lawrence believes this part of the Riviera isn’t big enough for the two of them, so a bet is made. The first to extract $50,000 from a mark will get the territory, and the other will leave. The target is beautiful young Christine, the apparent Colgate heiress, and the bet is later changed to whether or not Freddy can bed her. The funniest moments come from the extremes the characters (especially Freddy) are willing to go to. The comedy is broad, but some of the action comes from character as well. Yazbek’s score is first-rate. “Give Them What They Want,” sung by Lawrence, his crooked cop confederate Andre (Erny Rosales) and an ensemble, introduces the theme of the con man honing in on the mark’s vulnerabilities. “Chimp in a Suit,” sung by Andre, is a snarky take on the seemingly hopeless Freddy. “All About Ruprecht,” with Lawrence, Freddy and others, is a goofy look at the drooling idiot brother Freddy pretends to be in one scene. Lawrence uses Ruprecht to get rid of a woman he’s fleeced. And all that is in the first half of the first act. Connolly’s Lawrence is the kind of suave character that once would have been played by David Niven. McDowell’s Freddy could be played by Jim Carrey. Hebert gives Christine the sort of wide-eyed, naïve optimism of Ellie Kemper’s Kimmy Schmidt. Rosale’s droll Andre will charm your socks off. Olivia Harrison’s brisk direction is based on the sensible premise that if you put colorful, witty characters in absurd circumstances and get out of the way, good stuff will happen. And it does. The laughs come often, and there’s plenty of quality singing and stylish choreography by Kayla Garrett. Don Zastoupil’s wide-open set leaves plenty of room for the dance numbers. In fact, the stage is often rather bare, with furniture and props oddly off to extreme stage right and/or stage left. With a terrific score and some fine singers, it would be nice to see actors come downstage to the apron for big numbers more often. There’s a heavy use of video and projections (Lawrence’s villa, some comic effects) to help tell the story. The songs are done to a recorded music track, which gives the illusion of a huge production but loses the intimacy of working with live musicians. “Dirty Rotten Scoundrels” is old-fashioned Broadway musical comedy. There’s some mildly risqué humor and a rousing ending. Leaving the theater, I wanted to find a public restroom and scrawl graffiti on the wall: For a good time, see “Dirty Rotten Scoundrels.” The show continues through Oct. 2. For more information, visit www.camelottheatre.org. Reach Medford freelance writer Bill Varble at [email protected].