BWW Reviews: Stages St. Louis's Elegant and Charming MY FAIR LADY

My Fair Lady is a venerable warhorse of the stage, and though it used to be performed with a frightening degree of regularity, it's been a while since I've seen it, other than catching the film version on TCM recently. I must say I'm impressed with the current production by Stages St. Louis. It manages to maintain an intimacy that's lost in some of the larger stagings the work has received. In the cozy confines of the Robert G. Reim Auditorium we're able to appreciate the story as well as the staging, and being based on G.B. Shaw's superb play Pygmalion, it's important that that actually come through. It does. Marvelously so. Couple that with the insanely memorable score (book & lyrics Alan Jay Lerner, music by Frederick Lowe) and you have an full evening of wit and charm ahead of you. This is an elegant must-see!

The story follows Shaw's original concept, and deals with a cockney flower girl named Eliza Doolittle whose accent catches the ear of phoneticist Henry Higgins. His theory is that it's the horrible dialects that separate the classes, and he vows that he can make Eliza sound like a proper English lady in six months. Thus begins a learning experience that blossoms into romance.

Pamela Brumley is exceptional as Eliza Doolittle, deftly capturing the right dialect and temperament of the flower girl who yearns for more out of life. She does delicate vocal work on "Just You Wait" and "Without You", but really lets loose on "I Could Have Danced All Night". Christopher Guilmet is equally up to snuff as task master Professor Henry Higgins, and though he possesses a stern demeanor you can't help but root for them to get together. Brandon Davis also impresses as Freddie, and Edward Juvier is bouncy and bright as Eliza's inebriated father, Alfred. John Flack is good as Colonel Pickering, and Zoe Vonder Haar contributes nicely as Mrs. Higgins. The supporting cast is terrific and adds immeasurably to the experience.

Michael Hamilton's direction and staging are wonderfully done as always, and Dana Lewis does sharp work as choreographer. Lisa Campbell Albert's music direction blends neatly with Stuart Elmore's orchestral design. James Wolk's scenic design captures the right feel for the different settings, and it's all well lit by Matthew McCarthy. Dorothy Marshall Englis's costumes are especially well done.

This lovely production continues through October 6, 2013.

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