With a classic 1950s musical, a rainbow stretching across the upper parking lot, and a jolly Mike Issacson fresh from the Tonys, the opening night of The Muny’s 97th season was nothing short of “loverly.”
“All those people who are sitting at home, you can call them tomorrow and say ‘you missed it!’” Isaacson joked during his opening remarks, grateful that the rain stopped just in time for the show (and the season) to start.
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And he was right. Anyone who was scared off by the weather Monday night missed out on a stunning season opener. The cast may have had to “put this show together between the raindrops,” as Issacson put it, but with the exception of a few microphone mishaps and a rather stiff opening scene, no one would have known otherwise. The elegance, romance, and lovable absurdity of My Fair Lady makes it the kind of show The Muny does best, and it feels just as fresh as it must have when it opened in March 1956.
Visually, this is one of The Muny’s greatest. The scenic design (Timothy R. Mackabee) brings Edwardian London to muggy Forest Park with new, innovative set pieces. Most impressive is the portrait wall in Henry Higgins’ office, comprised of 80 portraits hand painted by The Muny’s scenic artists.
The scenes at the horse races allow costumes (by Amy Clark) to shine. When the ensemble assembles for the races on the stage’s huge grandstand (another set building masterpiece), the audience gets to admire the unique suits, gowns, hats, and parasols designed for each individual cast member. It’s a stunning hodgepodge of black, white, and pewter.
Anthony Andrews’ Professor Higgins is an even sharper and nastier misogynist than Rex Harrison’s in the 1964 film, throwing out insults with biting, utterly British detachment. But—probably due to his impressive acting credentials—Andrews is able to bring a unique depth to his character that simply does not exist in the film. At just the right time, Andrews’ Higgins projects a glimmer of vulnerability that helps the audience understand his coldness. He is perhaps one of the most vibrant, complex characters to grace The Muny stage.
Alexandra Silber delivers an Eliza Doolittle that matches her costar well. Silber’s Eliza is hilariously unkempt, and she does a respectable job of maintaining her Cockney accent, so essential to the musical’s plot. The role of Eliza is a challenging one, requiring the actor to switch from comedic acting in the first act to a much more dramatic role in the second, and Silber manages the transition with ease. Her feistiness and blunt honesty make the audience fall in love with her, and when she enters the stage in a sparkling white gown, a lady at last, the audience erupts into applause before she even speaks a word.
But Silber and Andrews do not carry the show on their own—the supporting cast is responsible for much of the humor that makes My Fair Lady so endearing. The standout, Zoe Vonder Haar, plays a dry Mrs. Higgins who refuses to take her serious son seriously. Matthew Scott is lovably lovesick as Freddy Eynsford-Hill, Michael McCormick delivers a ridiculous, dancing Alfred Doolittle, and Paxton Whitehead brings a subtler humor to Colonel Pickering. And of course, the show is packed with all the tongue-in-cheek quips that come along with a story about a young woman living with two older bachelors.
The story is endearing, the acting is unrivaled, and the songs are familiar to nearly all audience members—My Fair Lady has been called “the perfect musical,” and for The Muny, it’s the perfect season opener. Undeniably charming and visually superb, there’s no better way to welcome back summer in Forest Park.
See My Fair Lady at The Muny (#1 Theatre in Forest Park) from June 15-21. Tickets are free-$87, and can be purchased at The Muny box office or online.
