MY FAIR LADY (2018) Previews — Page 19

Thanks for your response, Poisonivy2. As I mentioned earlier in this thread, I bought a crummy seat for my trip in May. (There were not a lot of options and I don't buy premium.) Now, knowing this info, will make my experience more enjoyable.

This post is spoilery so skip it if you don’t want to know too much about this production.

Just exited. I seriously can’t stop smiling. Briefly about the ending, this production made me want Eliza and Higgins to figure out a way to work it out and be together more than any other but really that ending was the only one that makes sense for this production especially given how the scene before, during, and after “Without You” was played.



ETA:

Also, the scene where Eliza goes back to Covent Garden after “Show Me” I thought was well directed and played by Jordan Donica (Freddy). He’s not just cluelessly watching but you see the wheels turning in his head as he’s figuring out who’s Eliza actually is and where she came from. I found myself focusing on Freddy during that part and the way played that scene from being on the other side of the gate to meeting Alfred Doolittle was like he was having an internal monologue and making a decision about Eliza. The line about if she’s done there sound less confused as to what they were doing there and being in a hurry to get out of there and more like a real question.

I also liked the moment they gave between Norbert and Lauren during that scene when Alfred sees Freddy with her as well.

Updated On: 3/22/18 at 11:21 PM

I'm still resting on my thoughts from seeing the show a few days ago before I post something lengthier, but I want to chime in to say that Harry Hadden-Paton hasn't been spoken about nearly enough on here. He is an extraordinary Higgins. I'll be rooting for him for the Tony.

I saw the matinee today and I thought all of the elements were there it just needs a few more weeks of previews to sharpen itself. Sher and his actors have done the work, they just need to trust themselves and their intuitions. It is to no ones surprise a three dimensional approach which is appropriate. Ambrose has made smart acting choices, she just needs to pick up her cues and pump up the volume on her vocals maintaining the nuance and interpretation. Patton was kind of adorable and he too had made wise acting decisions. He upstaged himself from time to time although I thought other actors were guilty of the same partly due to a mix of thrust and proscenium staging. He actually had some sex appeal without realizing it which was kind of sweet. The shades were a nice touch.

I really liked the curved staircase in the study and it was wisely. I also thought the staging for Get Me To The Church was spot on. I am willing to bet it will be the chosen number for the Tony Awards. Turning it into a bachelor party was a clear and creative choice.

I think there is a bit of a challenge in terms of the book because time moves forward briskly and we see bits and pieces of character transitions and relationships and then witness the results or hear about them in future scenes. I felt like I was missing out on something and it made me care less about the relationship between the two leads. Perhaps Pygmalion is more successful in that way.

I also feel that every actor on the stage needs to speak with great clarity particularly when using an accent. Once you can't understand what someone is saying or hear them , it takes you out of the play and you start thinking about the length of the play or what you will be making yourself for dinner. But all in all I think the Beaumont has a hit on their hands...The flow of the entire production needs work and there is more humor to be found...

Okay, My Fair Lady. I see you.

This production is sublime. I've known since they announced it a year ago that Bart Sher's My Fair Lady in the Vivian Beaumont at Lincoln Center would be iconic. And it truly is.

The show looks and sounds sensational. The orchestra is full and vibrant, and Marc Salzberg deserves the Sound Design Tony just for the horses galloping literally over the audience alone. I feel like The King and I's iconic visual moment was the monstrous boat sweeping out over the stage—and you get a similar moment when you arrive at Higgins' home for the first time. Jaw-dropping.

As for performances...

Norbert is a total lock for the Featured Actor Tony this year. His relationship with Eliza is captivating, and "Get Me to the Church on Time" is a production number for the ages.

It was a privilege to see Diana Rigg on stage. She doesn't have a tremendously grand or melodramatic entrance, but you feel the audience's collective reverence for her during her entrance applause. Perfectly cast as Mrs. Higgins.

Jordan Donica's "On the Street Where You Live" was perhaps my favorite rendition of a song I've heard maybe a million times. He sounds beyond incredible. Sweet Freddy...

Give Harry Hadden-Paton the Tony for Lead Actor right now, please and thank you. The work he is doing up on that stage as Henry Higgins is sensational. At intermission, I was very impressed with him. But his descent into fury and semi-attempted but totally failed reconciliation with Eliza during Act II is beyond stunning. A fantastic performance.

Lauren Ambrose had a big impact on me as Eliza Doolittle. To me, she was a thrilling Eliza because I didn't know what to expect next. I kept thinking about our yearlong thread dream-casting a million Elizas, and how I could already vividly imagine what each of those actresses would have done in the role. Lauren is so unique. Her Eliza is introspective. I totally believe that she consciously decided to start on a somewhat subtler note before building up to what was honestly a transcendent ending of "I Could've Danced All Night." Just watching her face in the background of "You Did It" was like taking an intimate mental journey with Eliza. And she absolutely nailed the comedy during the racecourse scene. (Actually, the more I write about her, the more I realize how brilliant her performance was. Personally, I would still give the Tony to Katrina Lenk, but Ambrose delivered a highly Tony-worthy performance which will stay with me.)

Worth pointing out that Harry and Lauren have exceptional chemistry. Their scenes together fly by with lightning speed. Special mention to their dueling during the "Without You" scene. Just riveting.

As for the ending...

This is truly a production about the text and about the performances. Little did we know when we spent a year dream-casting our Eliza and Higgins that we didn't need big-time celebrity names to allow Sher to bring forth stunning performances and a nuanced, thoughtful revisiting of this funny and deeply moving text.

I will be revisiting. Many times.

BeNice said: "I've always felt Bart Sher sacrifices a lot of the jokes and humor in his revivals for the sake of his signature realness and grittiness. I particularly felt this was true withhis Fiddler."

I felt the same was true in The King and I as well. There were a lot of lines that could have landed in a much more humorous way but rather than do that, Sher wants to go for a more natural, real direction and that pays off in different ways.

BroadwayConcierge, I am in love with your post because you really hit the nail on the head with me. I want to see this again months from now where the actors and the production are sure to really hit their mark. I will be so rooting for Harry Hadden-Paton for that Tony as he is incredible as Higgins. Lauren Ambrose is a performance that will just stay with me and the more I think about what she gave to Eliza the more I realize what an amazing job she did. I think her slow burn approach to Eliza is also deserving of a Tony. One thing I might disagree with you a bit is that I wasn't feeling Norbert during "Little Bit of Luck" nor with his scene with Higgins in Act I (I think I'm so married to Stanley Holloway's portrayal that it's hard for me to see it played in a different way) but he really got me in Act II during his reunion scene with Eliza, seeing Freddy, and then "I'm Getting Married in the Morning" was a total home run.

Updated On: 3/22/18 at 01:49 AM

For those who were there at the matinee yesterday, did Lauren go up on her lines during the Ascot scene? There was a long pause and then she said, "Help!" There was another pause and it sounded like someone offstage was feeding her the line. Another pause and then what seemed like some convoluted dialogue before they got back on track.

I have to say I was completely won over by the production and the entire cast. And I have to say I thought Lauren was a revelation.

SmoothLover, what do you mean by "upstaged himself"?

dramamama611 said: "MCfan2 said: "SmoothLover, what do you mean by "upstaged himself"?"


Turned away from the audience. (He put himself too far downstage, so he had to turn UPstage to talk to others -- usually.)"

Oh, I see. Thanks!

Dancingthrulife2 said: "I think Sher is trying to refitting My Fair Lady into Pygmalion, which isn’t necessarily bad if you are not a purist or just looking for a fun night out. Pygmalion, IMHO, is far superior play than My Fair Lady if you strip the music away. Not only was it groundbreaking back when Shaw wrote it, it still speaks to our time, which is still troubled by class divide, gender inequality, and stereotypes we are expected to fit into based on our nationality, sexuality, gender, class, shape... Higgins made Eliza a Lady, but being a Lady also means Eliza has to behave in a way that smothers her fierce, carefree, independent self. What makes Eliza Eliza is her choice to dislike the lady Higgins turned her into and act it out, which is so heartbreaking yet extraordinary. Shaw’s stage directions gave so much depth and nuance to Eliza’s character, most of which unfortunately My Fair Lady throws away. My Fair Lady’s broad comic approach on Mr.Doolittle and Freddy also destroy their original purposes in Pygmalion. Freddy is a foil to Higgins, someone who genuinely treats Eliza as a human being than someone who Shaw writes thinks Eliza is no more important than his slippers. Mr. Doolittle’s transformation is also a manifesto on the clamp middle class morality puts on people. All of these are lost or barely evident in My Fair Lady. True, My Fair Lady was a product of its time, but how superficial it turned out to be (at least for most productions) is quite stunning. I’m sure Shaw must be spinning in his grave for a few decades. Hopefully Sher might finally give him the peace of mind."

I strongly disagree with this. I think MFL adheres to Shaw's dialogue to an amazing amount and the music deepens the characters. As if the case with all great musicals the score is the star. Higgins' monologues are witty and never fail to generate laughs from the audience.

And i disagree that Sher is trying to refit MFL into Pygmalion. Other than the ending Sher follows the musical incredibly faithfully.

poisonivy2 said "And i disagree that Sher is trying to refit MFL into Pygmalion. Other than the ending Sher follows the musical incredibly faithfully."

But ironically, what seems to concern many is that, without directorial refitting, or at least judicious tweaking, of the balance of the show so that it might integrally, and ideally organically, support the modified ending, the final curtain variation (from Lerner) might prove merely tacked on, jarringly inappropriate, perhaps even dubious and pandering to current taste.

In fact, many who have seen the show and like it have suggested that, to the contrary, Sher's modified ending is not only sublime but inevitable given the way he has directed the rest of the show, or at least the rest of Act 2.

Whereas many who have seen the show and have misgivings about the final curtain argue that the libretto doesn't support Sher's resolution (either constitutionally or perhaps for lack of consistency on Sher's part), particularly given the sympathies the audience has for Higgins during "I've Grown Accustomed to Her Face."

Personally, I find the idea of being very sympathetic to Higgins at the end, persuaded by his potential redemption and so wanting for him to be reunited with Eliza in spite of his mistreatment of her, but still to have Eliza do what she believes she needs to do for herself (what she believes is right for herself whatever that happens to be), to be a very appealing one for MY FAIR LADY, at least in theory. Of course, I'll reserve final judgment about how Sher handles the show including but not limited to the final curtain until I have a chance to actually see the show.

Updated On: 3/22/18 at 10:58 AM