"Lovingly ripped off" from Monty Python And The Holy Grail, Spamalot retells the story of King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table (one of whom has to push the pram a lot). The classic tale of a heroic hunt for the Holy Grail is augmented with catapulted cows, bloodthirsty rabbits, insulting French people and gratuitously under-dressed showgirls. Tim Curry, who starred as King Arthur when Spamalot opened on Broadway, recreates his role in this production. Curry is replaced from January 2007 by Simon Russell Beale, who is currently starring in the production on Broadway. Spamalot, which features book, lyrics and music by the third tallest Python Eric Idle, won the 2005 Tony Award for Best Musical and won a Grammy Award for Best Musical Show Album.

"Spamalot's infectious, irrepressible energy is contagious!" Newsweek

Directed by Mike Nichols, Eric Idle’s Spamalot was a runaway hit before the first performance even began. The musical, based on the movie Monty Python and the Holy Grail, is a souped-up, big budget musical packed with extensive production values and several new songs. It is most successful, however, when it is faithful to the original source material.

The story revolves around the legend of King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table. Tim Curry plays the hapless Arthur, who goes in search of the Holy Grail and along the way finds disdainful Frenchmen, killer bunny rabbits, knights who say “Ni" and other such wackiness. The movie has been supplemented with some added bits and a bizarre storyline in which the characters have been mandated to find Broadway, where the Holy Grail now awaits. The second half of the show is spent in pursuit of the elusive Broadway – in a yet undiscovered continent and several hundred years into the future.

The added material doesn’t always work. The Camelot as Vegas bit (“What happens in Camelot, stays in Camelot") is good for a few laughs, but the creation of a long production number drains the scene of its initial hilarity. Conversely, the funniest routine of the night features the gifted Christopher Sieber as a frustrated father imprisoning his son with the help of two incompetent guards. This classic “Who’s on First" skit actually gets funnier the longer it goes on…and on...and on. Better that the creators had stuck to the original sketches as Spamalot works best during these vintage Python routines.

As Arthur, Curry is perfectly cast – he has a strong presence, a beautiful baritone and manages to seem kingly and clueless at once. The Knights include an uncharacteristically subdued Hank Azaria, as the outed Lancelot, and the appealing David Hyde Pierce, making a successful Broadway debut as the cowardly Sir Robin. The latter is particularly effective in “You Won’t Succeed on Broadway," a soft-shoe number that shows off the TV actor’s theatrical chops.

But it is Sara Ramirez, as the Lady of the Lake, who stands out and steals the show from her talented male counterparts. Ms. Ramirez is a stunner – all curves, huge eyes and a striking, expressive face. She is an accomplished comedienne and has a voice with a range that can pretty much do it all. From Andrew Lloyd Webber-inspired musical operetta to the smoothest of jazz to Vegas-inspired cabaret numbers, this Lady delivers them all in a star-turn that brings to mind the musical theater’s legendary grand dames. One can easily picture Ms. Ramirez as Miss Adelaide, Mrs. Lovett, Annie Oakley and in any number of the great parts usually reserved for the likes of Bernadette Peters or Patti LuPone. It is when she is onstage that the show really takes off and its weaker parts don’t seem to matter.

While the show is uneven—some jokes do fall flat and some bits go completely over the audience’s head—it ultimately doesn’t matter. The gags keep coming, one after the other, and the ones that do hit their target are priceless. Armed with a strong cast, brisk and dynamic direction by Nichols, and general outlandish silliness, Spamalot will delight both devotees of Monty Python and regular theatergoers in search of a much-needed escape into a madcap world where they can always “look on the bright side of life."