Cameron Mackintosh Muses On MY FAIR LADY Film

In a new interview, theatrical producer extraordinaire Cameron Mackintosh muses on the prospects of a new feature film adaptation of Alan Jay Lerner/Frederick Loewe's MY FAIR LADY.

Mackintosh muses, "But if I found the right cast would I do MY FAIR LADY now? Yes, I would. Because as much as I thought the original film had some amazing performances in it. I remember thinking as an arrogant producer - I was in school when it first came out - but I remember being struck that it was a rather stage-y film. I felt it was like huge theatrical sets. I think you could do a much more modern, fluid film."

He continues, relating, "Because I staged the two major revivals in the last 20 years. My heart is very close to MY FAIR LADY. But there were various rights problems which are being finely sorted out as to when it can be made and remade. In the old days, you only made one movie! It's only in recent days that the word 'remake' has had any significant effect. In the time these musicals were sold to Hollywood, people didn't have any interest in the theatrical world. They didn't think there was enough money in it. Now it's the opposite. All the film companies want to get into the theater world. Probably because Andrew [Lloyd Webber] and I have made so much money in it!"

Mackintosh adds that MY FAIR LADY may well work well once again in a screen version largely because the musical itself was fashioned around a screenplay originally, not solely Shaw's classic play PYGMALION.

"With MY FAIR LADY, which is based more on Gabrielle Pascal's film, which was involved as co-screenwriter. The musical is based on the film rather than the original Pygmalion play. Just lIke Oliver!, another show I'm closely involved in and own part of the rights, that's based on the David Lean movie rather than the Dickens novel," Mackintosh relays.

He concludes, "Films have always been a source for material, because you have to adapt a book to a movie. So that step of adaptation is always helpful. It was actually a musical that inspired LES MISERABLES. Alain Boublil had never seen a stage version of OLIVER!, he had only seen the movie. As he watched this revival of OLIVER!, in January of 1978, as the Artful Dodger is singing 'Consider Yourself', suddenly in his mind popped Gavroche. By the end of the show, he thought, '[LES MISERABLES] could be a wonderful musical.' So he rang Claude-Michel [Schonberg] in Paris and said, 'I found our next subject.'

View the entire original article here.

Also, check out my recent InDepth InterView: Cameron Mackintosh here.

Photo Credit: Water McBride