| re: "My Fair Lady" - the forgotten Broadway revival of 1993-94 | |
| Posted by: MTMan 12:30 am EDT 08/30/18 | |
| In reply to: "My Fair Lady" - the forgotten Broadway revival of 1993-94 - Marlo*Manners 12:22 pm EDT 08/29/18 | |
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| I saw this production twice in New York, once with Errico and once with Meg Tolin as Eliza. Though Errico sang it well (naturally), her Eliza was quite a blank. There was no spine in the girl, she was sort of willowy and dewy--neither of which seem right for Eliza either as the guttersnipe nor the lady she eventually becomes. The strength needed to stand up to Higgins was missing, so the show lacked a satisfying arc. Meg Tolin, however, was a revelation to me. She was completely winning, sang the score beautifully, and went toe to toe with Chamberlain. For the first and perhaps the only time in a production of "My Fair Lady" I truly sensed the connection between the two characters and saw it spark right from the beginning. Tolin's Eliza seemed fascinated with Higgins from the first scene at Covent Garden, and he seemed equally fascinated from the moment she stepped into his home to ask for lessons. In the penultimate scene of the play, Higgins tells Eiiza that she should return in part "for the fun of it", and this was the only pairing I've seen where I actually knew what he meant. Though the production was very strangely staged and the orchestra both times I saw it played abominably, the combination of Tolin and Chamberlain has stuck with me all these years. I was convinced at the time I was seeing a star being born in Tolin's performance. Her "Danced All Night" while walking on the frame of her bed like a balance beam was pure joy. Time has proved me wrong in that she never became the star I believed her to be, though I did see her and Chamberlain together again in "The Sound of Music" tour when it played in Chicago. I believe they became quite close friends, and there certainly was chemistry to spare. |
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