Having - dreadfully - not yet read Sarah Waters' bestselling novel, Tipping the Velvet, I came into The Lyric Theatre's adaptation expecting only the most superficial: lesbian romps and showbiz tales. Instead I was treated to a riotously funny spectacle of strong women, class, sexuality, self-discovery, gender and inspiring feminist politics.

Playwright Laura Wade and director Lyndsey Turner (fresh from work on Hamlet, starring Benedict Cumberbatch) mix Victorian aestheticism with contemporary culture to create a fun feminist commentary on both Victorian and present-day England.

The play whirls through the humble Nancy "Nan" Astley's (Sally Messham) life on her journey to discover her sexuality, politics and performance career, intertwined by a soundtrack of modern hits and risqué humour - including a hysterical cameo from Ru Hamilton as a Soho rent boy.

Laura Rogers and Sally Messham as Kitty and Nancy respectively balanced each other out well; Rogers as Kitty provided a commanding voice and wonderfully solid presence. Messham, in Tipping the Velvet as her professional debut, growing from a nervous oyster girl into a Miley-Cyrus-singing, dildo-wearing bombshell.

Messham roots the silliness of some of the action into a strong moral message, roaring her - relevant even to 21st century society - feminist manifesto to the tune of Lee Hazlewood's "These Boots Are Made For Walking".

Lizzie Clachan's set designs are also to be commended, with her theatrical backdrops that lend the action a picturesque, old-world feel.

Audiences are told to expect scenes of a sexual nature, but the acts themselves are dealt solely in innuendo; dizzying acrobatics performed at towering heights above a bed suggests giddy passion, while later in the story Nancy precariously blows on a recorder between a man's legs to symbolise... Well, you catch my drift.

The slick acrobatic scenes and careful innuendo juxtaposes the play's brash, bawdy message with an innocence that makes it accessible for a younger, more straight-laced audiences.

Although the play does last three hours, the use of an interactive narrator to occasionally pull the audience out of the action, along with the quirky contemporary culture references, kept the audience engaged and excited throughout.

Tipping the Velvet may not be a polished gem, but it is a rare thing to see female sexuality portrayed with such frankness on stage; it is a play written, directed, starring and concerning women, and it is unashamedly bold about the issues women face both then and now.

After its £20m redesign, The Lyric Theatre stunned with its fun, cheeky musical Bugsy Malone; Tipping the Velvet provides an adult-themed successor with grit, heart and cool contemporary relevance.

Tipping The Velvet is at The Lyric Theatre, Hammersmith until Saturday October 24. Tickets cost from £15 and are available on the official website.