Debbie and I got the last two seats available for the My Fair Lady performance today at 2 p.m. There were only a handful of seats left for the entire weekend, so we were thrilled. I love My Fair Lady. So we trekked up to the Ahmanson Theatre in LA with great anticipation.
Unfortunately, it was slightly disappointing. There was little to no chemistry between Henry Higgins (Christopher Cazenove) and Eliza (Dana DeLisa). We realized half way through that the main actress to play Eliza was Lisa O’Hare, but that the performances were split by date between the two actresses. DeLisa didn’t possess the charm, innocence or charisma needed to be Eliza. Perhaps it was her limited experience. Perhaps it was her inability to master the necessary cockney accent. Perhaps it was her lack of presence. But Eliza is the central character, so it just tainted everything else.
Debbie wondered if maybe we were just spoiled by Audrey Hepburn. But I don’t think so, when we saw Fiddler on the Roof on Broadway I didn’t miss Topol. It’s a question of ability to do the role. So if you’re going to get tickets to see My Fair Lady when it comes to your town, make sure you’re going to see O’Hare. I hear she’s amazing.
Overall the show was good. The scenery was phenomenal. The costumes were spectacular. The supporting cast is great. Marni Nixon, the voice of Audrey Hepburn in the movie, brought everyone to their feet when she walked on stage as Mrs. Higgins. Tim Jerome, Alfred P. Doolittle, is hilarious as the nare-do-well father. They even added a street performance with trash-can lids. The Ascot scene is expertly choreographed, a treat to watch.
I think we were also put-off because they continued to let people into the theatre up to 30 minutes after the show started. So we constantly had people climbing over us, talking, and flash-lights in the eyes for a while. It was terrible. We even talked to the house manager about it and she said that there was nothing they could do, the tour manager said they could let people in through the duration of the show.
Still a fun day in LA and in the theatre.





