WOMEN are being exploited as sexual playthings in this play but they're remarkably assertive given that it's a Restoration comedy written in 1677. Also remarkable for its time, it's by a woman, Aphra Behn.

Set among randy Cavalier exiles in Naples after their Civil War defeat, what with the samey costumes and plethora of masks - it's carnival time - it takes a while to differentiate the characters. And it's a convoluted plot with lots of cross-dressing and sub-plots.

Crucially, a cracking pace is maintained throughout, and acting is excellent. So is the period background music.

Oliver Hewett plays Willmore, the rakish hero, not inappropriately, as if it's a farce; he's very good on the double take. Holly Gillanders is excellent, as always, playing Florinda, and so, particularly after the break, is Phil McGough as the hapless Blunt.

As Angellica, the courtesan rejected in authentic love, Stephanie Collyer, in a subtle performance, conveys the pathos and irony of her plight superbly. She gets underneath the surface comedy.

Director Jane Herring takes us to the heart of the playwright's subversive intention in an interesting and highly entertaining production.

ALAN GEARY