Mrs Warren's Profession is among the best of Bernard Shaw's plays - wise, witty, not for once wordy and always revealing of its writer's intimate understanding of the way the world works.

The 'profession' is that described by Shelley as "the oldest one", which was rather to forget, surely, those various others concerned with what his contemporary Wordsworth called "getting and spending".

Money-grubbing, in fact, lies at the heart of the play, rarely better expressed than through the matter-of-fact greed of baronet Sir George Crofts, curiously sympathetic as depicted by Christopher Timothy.

The business partner of Mrs Warren (Sue Holderness), he is co-owner of a chain of brothels whose existence must necessarily be concealed from the sparky young lady - daughter of Mrs W. - who has most significantly benefited from them.

But it is passing strange that head-screwed-on, proto-feminist Vivie (Emily Woodward) has not earlier discerned the source of the family fortunes, particularly in the light of her overdressed mama's revealing tendency to refer to all and sundry as "dearie".

Gold-digging is not confined in this play to the female sex, as might be observed in the conduct of Vivie's admirer, the pretty-boy Frank, excellently portrayed by Ryan Saunders, whose craft was honed at the Oxford School of Drama.

The son of local Rector Samual Gardiner (Richard Derrington), who is very possibly Vivie's dad, Frank rather comes over in this production, such is his flirty intimacy, as a boyfriend of Mrs Warren's art expert pal Praed (Christopher Bowen).

"The most intimate human relationships are far beyond and above the scope of the law," says Praed, an illuminating observation in a play written in the decade of Oscar Wilde's trial, although not publicly performed, owing to its subject matter, until 30 years later.

This welcome revival from the Everyman Theatre, Cheltenham, under director Paul Milton, is a most polished and good-looking production, which should not be missed.