[ THEATRE ]
COURTESTY WINDWARD COMMUNITY COLLEGE Eliza Doolittle (Tricia Marciel) is transformed in Paliku Theatre's "My Fair Lady."
It’s the ultimate
makeover story
ANY production of "My Fair Lady" has more going for it than the combination of Frederick Loewe's memorable melodies and Alan Jay Lerner's engaging lyrics. The story itself, adapted by Lerner from George Bernard Shaw's 1916 play, engages the romantic fantasies of both genders. For men there is the comforting spectacle of a wealthy gentleman molding a working-class woman into a perfect lady. For women there is the equally enjoyable spectacle of an intelligent woman overcoming economic disadvantages to move into the upper levels of society -- while making over a "confirmed old bachelor" in the process.
Add the fact that the story takes place in the early years of the last century, when England was still the hub of a great empire, and "My Fair Lady" is a larger-than-life fairytale with timeless appeal. Director Ron Bright's new staging of "My Fair Lady" is not perfect, but will not disappoint fans of the epic Broadway classic.
Bright works all his well-known magic in making his latest "Lady" feel big and expansive. There's lots of color and lots of energy. Henry Higgins' study has a particularly solid and substantial look to it; Covent Garden and Tottenham likewise look like more than flimsy stage sets. Yoori Kim's restaging of the choreography fills the stage with movement, and Bright never lets the dancers overstay their welcome or stall the forward momentum of the story (the detail work and low-key comic elements in Kim's treatment of "Ascot Gavotte" is particularly entertaining).
The orchestra, alas, is generally so loud that it is difficult to hear the leads clearly or fully appreciate Lerner's marvelously witty lyrics. This is the major problem with the show and hopefully will have been resolved by the time performances resume this weekend.
Bright's brightest find in terms of casting is Patrick Torres as the "confirmed old bachelor," Henry Higgins. When Dennis Proulx played Higgins at Army Community Theatre 2001, he gave more warmth to the role than Rex Harrison did in originating it on Broadway in 1956. He sang the lyrics to "I'm an Ordinary Man" and "Hymn to Him" rather than recite them. Torres plays Higgins closer to the way Harrison did, but try to resist the natural temptation to compare Torres with Harrison -- Torres does a good job with it. More important, he understands what the role is about.
Torres effectively conveys the emotional turmoil that a real-life Higgins would have faced. English gentlemen of the era were trained almost from birth to believe that any display of emotion was inappropriate and viewed women as inherently inferior. Suddenly Higgins finds himself unexpectedly in love and increasingly aware that he will lose this special woman if he doesn't tell her how he feels.
Torres is less acidly convincing than Harrison was in expressing Higgins' opinions of women and marriage, but his performance provides the dramatic payoff to this production. Torres consistently shows us both Higgins' bewilderment and slowly dawning awareness as his relationship with Eliza evolves.
Tricia Marciel (Eliza) has the voice for the role and plays the guttersnipe side of the character quite well, but slips into a more passive persona once she turns into a "lady." Marciel's performance thereafter never conveys much sense that Eliza is particularly interested either in Higgins or the hapless Freddy Eynsford-Hill (John "Keoni" Gruhler). Where Torres shows us Higgins' feelings in key scenes, Marciel tells us what Eliza is experiencing.
Steve D. Wagenseller (Alfred P. Doolittle) initially seems to be holding himself back in the role of Eliza's irresponsible, opportunistic father, but quickly blossoms. By the time Doolittle turns up in Higgins' study and explains why he'll sell his daughter to Higgins for 5 pounds but not for 10, Wagenseller owns the role. Wagenseller's engaging performance in "Get Me to the Church on Time" is a welcome and revitalizing burst of energy in Act II, after several rather limp scenes.
Gruhler is competent as Eliza's upper-class beau and does justice to both versions of "On the Street Where You Live." He earned an appreciative laugh when he was found still hanging out on "the street" in Act II. Perhaps Freddy is meant to be seen as a man in love with the ideal of courtly love rather than a man seeking a real-life relationship, but he and Marciel do nothing to suggest romantic chemistry (someone in costuming should also find a way to hide his anachronistic ponytail).
"My Fair Lady" continues through Nov. 16, with shows at 7:30 p.m. Thursdays through Saturdays (no show on Halloween), at Paliku Theatre, Windward Community College. Tickets are $18 to $26. Call 235-7433 or visit www.eTicketHawaii.com
Click for online
calendars and events.
