Ms Benanti is fabulous - but she's also a woman, not a girl - she's 37. While Julie Andrews was 21 and Audrey Hepburn 35ish - Hepburn looked to be about 21, and held on to her ability to play 'girlish'.
Also - we learned in SHE LOVES ME - that Ms Benanti is not a lyric soprano, which is what Eliza requires.
While Mrs Patrick Campbell made a great splash as the original Eliza in PYGMALION, the crix did notice that she was too old for the part. Mrs P-C was 49!
When the 1938 film was made (for which Shaw wrote the screenplay) he was insistent that a much younger actress, 26 year old Wendy Hiller, played the role. In this instance, we do know how the playwright saw the character. |
