More than A Little Bit of Luck Behind Musical Hit

Lerner and Loewe's beloved masterpiece My Fair Lady will already be familiar to most of the audience coming to see this summer’s show at Chichester Festival Theatre.

Its success, therefore, depends on elegance, wit, impeccable vocal performances and the actors’ ability to deliver timeless comedy with the subtext of surprisingly sharp social commentary.

So, the first major plaudit has to go to Stuart Burt CDG CSA, the show’s Casting Director, who has assembled an absolute dream team, full of energy, note perfect, and able to dance, sing and act to match the best of the West End.

My Fair Lady is the first professional role for the hugely talented Keziah Ibe, taking on the iconic role of Eliza Dolittle – what a find. Seeing her performance is like experiencing Riverdance on the night of Eurovision, Mark Rylance in Jerusalem or Michael Crawford in Phantom. Chichester audiences looking for brownie points and theatre going kudos will be thrilled to be able to boast in the future that ‘they saw her here first’.

Ibe has great stage presence and held the lively audience in the palm of her hand from the boisterous Rain in Spain to the vengeful Just You Wait Henry Higgins.

Rex Harrison’s iconic portrayal of the cantankerous Higgins is so embedded in our popular culture that it came as a huge surprise when Hadley Fraser’s interpretation of the role made you wonder why it wasn’t played that like in the first place.

He brings added nuance to the role that makes Higgins’ character contradictions utterly credible, as well as an impressive physicality to add comedy value and pathos in equal measure.

And then there’s Gary Milner, not so much taking on the role of Alfred P Doolittle as ducking, diving and delivering a Del Boy/Van Dyke brand of charismatic cockney – winning his way into everyone’s hearts with boundless energy.

The whole cast is exceptionally strong from blockbusting start to crowd pleasing finish. Ben Culleton as Freddy Eynsford-Hill sings beautifully and is completely believable as Eliza’s besotted beau, with great supporting performances from Tony Jayawardena as Pickering, Belinda Lang as Mrs Higgins and Finty Williams as Mrs Pearce.

The production sounds great (you can hear every single word thanks to Sound Designer Ian Dickinson) and looks great too.

The inventive set design evokes multiple London locations from Covent Garden to Wimpole Street while maintaining an atmosphere that feels both theatrical and cinematic. Clever staging, elegant lighting and thoughtful use of space ensure the production maintains its momentum, with each new setting unfolding naturally before the audience.

By the time the cast launch into Get Me to the Church on Time, the theatre audience was positively fizzing with delight. Several of the audience close to us started singing along - a spontaneous response reflecting their affection for the show and the exuberance of the performance unfolding on stage.

What ultimately makes this My Fair Lady so satisfying is its confidence in the original. There are no unnecessary conceptual overlays, knowing side-glances or distracting modernisations.

Instead, Director Rachel Kavanaugh demonstrates that when a classic is cast well, sung beautifully and staged imaginatively, its enduring appeal needs little embellishment.

This is a production that honours one of musical theatre's finest achievements while reminding us why audiences continue to fall in love with it generation after generation. Elegant, affectionate and musically accomplished, it is an evening that leaves the audience smiling long after the final curtain.

If it follows last year’s Oliver into London’s West End bringing the show to an even wider audience, wouldn’t that be luvverly.

My Fair Lady runs at Chichester Festival Theatre until Saturday September 5.

There’s a Dementia Friendly performance on Thursday July 29 at 2.30pm, a Relaxed Performance on Tuesday September 1 and Touch Tours of the set for blind and visually impaired visitors from Friday August 14 – Saturday September 5, bookable via the theatre’s excellent accessibility page https://www.cft.org.uk/accessibility

Photo credit: Johan-Persson