SOHO, London in the 1950s - it is definitely not your usual setting for a Jacobean comedy.

But the original A Mad World My Masters, written by Thomas Middleton and first performed in 1605, has been given a going over by Sean Foley and Phil Porter to bring it into the modern world.

Sean, who also directs, said: "It's a very, very funny comedy about sex and money.

"All the characters are on the make trying to get money or trying to get off with someone - so it seems some things never change.

"Although it was written 400 years ago, it is still extremely funny now.

"Initially, when it opened in Stratford-upon-Avon 18 months ago we found it was getting big laughs and people are still finding it funny on tour, it still makes people laugh."

The scene is set in Soho, London, 1956. Where glamour rubs up against filth, and likes it.

The posh mix with musicians, whores and racketeers and it is where a dashingly impecunious bachelor in need of quick cash and a good time has to live on his wits.

Turning con-man to fool his rich uncle, he variously becomes a lord, a high class call girl, and – God forbid – a poor actor.

But a beautiful Soho tart is also on the scam. She is a whore to some, a religious instructor to others, and a debutante in need of an eligible bachelor to yet more.

Sean described the importance of making sure that during editing, nothing got in the way of communicating Middleton's seething delight in exposing how we pretend to be what we're not to get what we want.

"We had to cut away all references, a lot of jokes in it were in a "Have I Got News For You" fashion, they were contemporary to when Thomas Middleton had written it.

"We had to cut all of those political jokes or the expressions which had fallen out of use.

"It is still essentially the same play we just got rid of a few things.

"The main thing we looked at during editing was is the character entertaining for us and were the jokes funny enough."

Having opened in Malvern on Tuesday and running until Saturday, it has enjoyed a good opening night at the Festival Theatre with Sean saying it went "terrifically well" and had been well received by audiences.

And he reassures that despite being based on a 400-year-old script, it is a play that can be enjoyed by everyone.

"When we were in Stratford we had lots of young students coming to see it and lots of Americans, we wondered how they would take the British humour but they loved it.

"Anyone who likes comedy, particularly British comedies like Carry On films or Rising Damp, those kind of comedies, they have roots in these kind of plays."

When I ask about the "smutty" comedy, he interjects: "I think it's naughty comedy, naughty is a better word to describe it rather than smutty.

"It is really, really naughty or saucy and people actually all over the world love that they just pretend they don't," he joked.

"There's nothing new under the sun, people have always enjoyed that sort of thing."

Sean also directed Jeeves and Wooster - Perfect Nonsense which will be coming to Malvern from Monday, March 30.

Discussing the two shows, he said the source material differed massively.

"They are two incredibly successful comedies, they are very different but they do really, really entertain people.

"We are talking big, massive belly laughs quite a lot throughout the shows and not just the occasional wry smile or titters."

Tickets and information for A Mad World My Masters is available by calling Malvern Theatres on 01684 892277 or online at malvern-tickets.co.uk.