It’s 1912 England and pompous phonetics expert Henry Higgins and his avuncular friend Pickering make a bet challenging Higgins to transform an ill-spoken flower seller so she can pass for a proper lady at the Embassy Ball. She passes the test, and then act II gets complicated, exploring Eliza’s frustrations, “Just You Wait” “Without You."
The show is adapted by Alan Jay Lerner from George Bernard Shaw’s Pygmalion, a complex social comedy about class and gender. Shaw never intended Higgins and Eliza to end up romantically linked - but the demands of 50’s “happy ever after” required that interpretation. Though they have not changed the script, the treatment of the ending and the attitudes of the characters bring the show to present-day relevance.
The production values and performances are stellar, with Shereen Ahmed as a determined and strong Eliza, Laird Mackintosh as a self-absorbed, brilliant, childish, complicated Higgins. Kevin Pariseau is the more gentlemanly Pickering, who respects Eliza’s feelings, while remaining Higgins’ ally. Adam Grupper is a delightfully derelict Alfred Doolittle, Eliza’s ne’er-do-well father, a spirited performance in every way — with two show-stoppers. Sam Simahk is the doting Freddy, soaring on “The Street Where You Live.” JoAnna Rhinehart was elegant and knowing as Higgins’ mother. Wade McCollum was a fun shot of comic relief as Professor Zoltan Karpathy.
The show is almost three hours of excellence, with a fabulous set featuring a gigantic turntable house that seems to flow through time and doors - as well as 1912 London scenes… and the occasional almost empty stage that accents certain scenes. Fabulous costumes, choreography from elegant to rowdy. This excellent production shines new light on an old story. I think Shaw would approve.
Mu Fair Lady continues through March 1.
https://www.whartoncenter.com/events/detail/my-fair-lady