Primarily a memento of Toby Robertson's production of 1968, this has attractions that are certainly not limited to those who saw the show, whether in London, Cambridge or Edinburgh. It moves with speed and spirit, is vividly acted so that ears communicate to eyes, and compresses effectively so that the quick succession of tuneful numbers delights and somewhat surprises. But the show has to be accepted on its own terms. It is not for the musicologist or student of eighteenth-century drama: such folk will probably turn to the complete recording under Jeremy Barlow. It is not for a refined musical taste (which will thrive best in company of the Britten arrangement conducted by Steuart Bedford) or for the Haymarket carriage-class (who will probably prefer the star-studded Bonynge and Gamley version). The style here is loud and 'popular', and the music is given a modern flavouring, though the idiom adjusts so naturally that this probably hits upon the spirit of the original more faithfully than any of the others mentioned.
None of the actors betrays a training in 'classical' singing, but all produce their voices professionally and have something to show in the way of raw material. The Macheath will hardly seem right to anyone wanting a voice that suggests a dashing and romantic figure, his singing being a curious mixture of styles and timbres, and his speaking sounding middle-aged: yet he works in with the rest, who are all most happily cast. There are some anomalies of placing, so that a speaking-voice which comes from one speaker may jump to another when it starts to sing; also some scarcely disguised tape-joins. The company's verve and talent, however, can carry a few technical weaknesses of that sort.'