The musical My Fair Lady depicts the story of Eliza Doolittle, a teenage Cockney flower vendor, and Henry Higgins, a linguistics professor intent to turn her into his notion of a "perfect lady." At the London Coliseum, My Fair Lady had a daringly opulent performance. Henry Higgins and Eliza Doolittle were back in a time capsule filled with lovely dresses, catchy music, and comical squabbles.
My Fair Lady has always been held to a high standard. It's easy to see why it was such a hit on Broadway, with its abundance of English period clichés like top hats, Ascot races, adoring cockneys, and snobbish toffs. It has a great appearance, but it occasionally falls short.
It would be difficult to ruin Lerner and Loewe's 1956 musical My Fair Lady because it is so witty and well-crafted. Alan Jay Lerner and Frederick Loewe's lavish Broadway staging of the musical epitomizes a relaxing evening at the theater. On a Michael Yeargan-designed set that is tastefully twirled, it moved smoothly from one beloved song to the next.
By casting Amara Okereke as the first black Eliza Doolittle, the production gained an unsaid dimension of race and class. Okereke has an entrancing voice and sings with true tenderness and clarity. Her Eliza, on the other hand, was a little too brash and combative; the character should have been more endearing.
Bartlett, on the other hand, made a great choice in casting Harry Hadden-Paton as Henry Higgins for the Broadway production. He seemed almost born for the part. He is 41 years younger than in the 1964 film, but he was still capable of eliciting strong emotions. Hadden-Paton was both charming and brazenly insensitive; a living manifestation of his class and gender; he just needed a little more projection in the massive Coliseum.
Despite their individual strengths, Okereke and Hadden-Patton apparently lacked chemistry, reducing the impact of the finale. Even when Eliza sang I Could Have Danced All Night, there was no clear indication of Higgins and Eliza developing an easy relationship. They struck me as better at portraying mutual hatred because there is more growly yelling than anything more subtle. For those who have seen the film classic, it would seem difficult to see the benefit of attending this inaccurate rendition over watching it at home. Under Bartlett Sher's leadership, the lack of inventiveness felt like a missed opportunity.
It was easy to see why this production was such a hit on Broadway, with its exportable picture of a bygone Britain complete with top hats, vintage lamp posts, and oak-paneled spaces. However, misogyny and class boundaries in English society were still prominent in the plot. Furthermore, if the main characters had enough romantic chemistry, Eliza's rejection of Higgins at the end would have been much more powerful and poignant. Instead, she merely appeared to be leaving for the time being rather than emotionally breaking away from Higgins.
Nonetheless, this charming rendition was generally well-made. It was not a classic My Fair Lady production, but it came across as ideal for a romantic evening. In addition, there was a pop-up florist at the theater where you could purchase colorful flowers.
My Fair Lady is currently on stage at the London Coliseum until August 27th.
