ACT ONE

The strange circumstances surrounding Tom Jones' birth and early years are related in the opening number (Behold!) - in particular, how Mr Allworthy, upright landowner living in Somerset with his spinster sister, Bridget, discovers an infant boy abandoned in his bed.

The childless Allworthy determines to raise the boy as his own, naming him Tom Jones. For a while, Tom is the only potential beneficiary of Allworthy's large estate, until Bridget unexpectedly married a Captain Blifil.

The latter dies soon after the marriage, leaving Bridget with a child, Master Blifil, who - being legitimate, unlike Tom, who is a bastard - becomes Allworthy's rightful heir. Bridget's health begins to fail and she goes to stay in Bath, where she later succumbs to her illness.

Tom grows into a good-hearted and remarkably handsome young man, although his high spirits and penchant for village wenches sometimes land him in hot water with his guardian (I Can Be Better). Blifil, on the other hand, turns into a hypocritical schemer, adept at hiding his true nature from others (Spider, Spider).

Allworthy's neighbour is the highly irascible Squire Western. His daughter, Sophia, an old playmate of Tom and Blifil, has just returned from 'improving-school' after several years' absence. She has become a beautiful woman possessed of all the the maidenly virtues - commented on in a tongue-in-cheek way by the ensemble (Fair Sophia).

At about the same time, Sophia's cousin, the scatterbrained Mrs Fitzpatrick, comes to stay with the Westerns following an estrangement from her insanely jealous husband. On seeing Sophia again, Tom is immediately smitten. He subsequently rescues her when her horse bolts, cracking a rib in the process. Recuperating at the Squire’s house, he and Sophia fall in love (Something Of The Lady).

They have to keep their romance a secret, however, as it quickly becomes clear that Western has higher ambitions for his daughter than marriage to a 'bastard'. The lesson is rubbed home when Allworthy falls dangerously ill - though he subsequently recovers - leaving Tom to ponder the prospect of a less than certain future.

He suggest to Sophia that she is better off without him, but she assures him that love is all that matters to her (When I Wed ).

The situation becomes more fraught when, through a series of misunderstandings, the meddling Mrs Fitzpatrick comes to believe that Sophia is in love with Blifil. This is music to Western's ears, as the marriage would unite the Allworthy and Western estates. When the truth comes out - that Sophia actually loves Tom - he flies into a rage, and vows that she will marry Blifil whether she likes it or not.

By a series of crafty manoeuvres, Blifil manages to have Tom expelled from the Allworthy household. A dispirited Tom sets off for London, intending to join the army. Sophia, friendless and threatened by a forced marriage to the revolting Blifil, decides to run away and stay with another cousin, the high-and-mighty Lady Bellaston, who also lives in London. On finding Sophia gone, Western vows to find her, and sets off in pursuit (Departures).

At about the same time, Mrs Fitzpatrick discovers that her husband has tracked her down, and she also hurriedly leaves Western's house.

Stopping off at a seedy tavern on the road, Tom strikes up a conversation with one of the patrons, who turns out to be a Mr Partridge - the man Tom has always believed to be his father. Partridge, however, quickly disabuses him of this idea. He has no idea who Tom's real father may be.

He is, however, astounded to learn that Tom intends to become a common soldier, and tries to convince him that , with all of Tom's natural good looks and charm, London society will surely take him to its bosom (Why Wait?). They decide to travel together.

On the road, Tom rescues a woman - Mrs Waters - from the attentions of a would-be rapist. Partridge runs away in fright.

The focus now shifts to the Upton Inn. One by one, unbeknownst to each other, the main protagonists arrive: Mrs Fitzpatrick on the run from her mad husband; Mr Fitzpatrick, in search of his dotty wife; Sophia, determined to escape enforced marriage to Blifil; Western, equally determined to enforce it; Partridge, who only wants a quiet life and a bottle of wine (or two); and Tom, who rapidly ends up in bed with Mrs Waters, little suspecting that Sophia has observed their amorous antics.

In a farcical scene reminiscent of Noises Off, mayhem duly ensues (Sir), ending with Sophia and Mrs Fitzpatrick escaping on a horse, closely followed by Tom and Partridge, with Western in hot pursuit.

ACT TWO

Arrived in London (Just Wait ), Sophia stays at Lady Bellaston's house, while Tom and Partridge are eventually taken in by Mrs Summer, an old friend of Mr Allworthy's, who keeps a boarding-house. Alone in their respective rooms, Tom and Sophia ponder what might have been (Distant As The Moon).

Subsequently, through a chance encounter with Mrs Fitzpatrick, Tom is introduced to Lady Bellaston, though the latter does not let on that Sophia is staying with her. The jaded and sexually predatory Bellaston has her own plans for Tom - she showers gifts on him and tricks him into attending a masked ball (Masks), at which she lures him into her bed.

Bellaston becomes increasingly infatuated with Tom, who, for his part, initially finds being the centre of attention in London society to be rather exhilarating, although the novelty quickly palls (What Could Be Better?).

Brought to his senses by Partridge, he resolves to break things off with Bellaston. At her house, he discovers Sophia. Their old affection for each other is quickly rekindled, but they are interrupted by Bellaston's arrival. Tom and Bellaston feign ignorance of each other.

Once Tom has gone Bellaston - by now a jealous and dangerous woman - hatches a plot involving a soirée in a week's time, and requests Sophia's presence. Her intention is to ruin her.

Seizing on the soirée as an opportunity to elope with Tom, Sophia writes Tom a letter saying that she will leave a coded message with Mrs Fitzpatrick if all is well. On the evening in question, Tom calls on Mrs Fitzpatrick, but her husband bursts in on them in a jealous rage. He and Tom fight, and Fitzpatrick is severely wounded. Tom is thrown into jail, and believes he may be executed if Fitzpatrick dies. He is thus unable to keep his rendezvous with Sophia, who takes it as another example of Tom's irresponsibility (Something Of The Lady - Reprise).

At the soirée, Bellaston has arranged for Sophia to be ravished by the odious Lord Fellamar, but at the crucial moment, Squire Western erupts onto the scene, sends Fallamar packing, and drags Sophia off, saying that he has sent for Allworthy and Blifil, and that she will be married as soon as they arrive. Duly settled in at Mrs Summers's, Blifil - with suppressed glee - related to Allworthy what has happened to Tom, and then shares some of his own philosophy with the audience (The World Delights ).

Meanwhile, in a prison, at what he thinks is his lowest ebb, Tom finally realises the error of his ways, and vows to change his life (should one remain to him) (Come What May). But further disasters lie in wait.

He is visited surreptitiously by Sophia, but their reconciliation is subverted by the arrival of Bellaston, who maliciously informs Sophia of the intimacies that have occurred between herself and Tom. Later, Mrs Waters - the woman Tom bedded at Upton - makes an appearance. As she leaves, Partridge catches sight of her for the first time, and, horrified, reveals to Tom that she is his mother!

However, this too turns out to be a red herring. In a final revelatory scene, the secrets of Tom's parentage are finally brought into the light - Bridget is his real mother and Mrs Summer's son his real father - and Blifil's corrupt nature is revealed. Now the true heir to Allworthy's estate, Tom is finally reconciled with Sophia, and the pair are married to (almost) general rejoicing (Finale).