LAST year when I said I thought Eyemouth Variety Group could tackle My Fair Lady, I meant it as a compliment; I didn’t mean that they should actually attempt it.
When I heard that they had chosen to do it, I wondered whether I should go into hiding.
My Fair Lady is a daunting task. Not only does it demand high acting and musical ability, it makes demands on the audience too. They cannot be entertained unless they think about what is going on – and it goes on for almost three hours.
If it is not done well the audience gives up trying to follow it and becomes restless. Those were my fears.
I need not have worried. This was a superb performance.
The audience lapped it up; at times applauding, then laughing (in the right places) then falling completely silent at the drama of it (when Eliza turned her back on Professor Higgins in his mother’s conservatory, you could hear a pin drop).
Of course much depends on the two principals; they are on stage for the bulk of the show.
Bob Lockwood played Professor Higgins with great skill and just the right amount of verve; it is easy to go over the top in this part.
So convincing was he that at times I thought the audience were going to boo him for his abuse of Eliza.
Eliza was played to perfection by Carmella Williams, blossoming from scruffy, fiesty flower girl to radiant elegant beauty as the play progressed.
The interaction between these two was electric but they never allowed the excitement of their exchanges to blur the dialogue; we heard every word. And that for My Fair Lady is absolutely essential.
But their efforts would have been in vain without a strong supporting cast, each expertly sketching in their own part of the story. Roy Baldwinson (Colonel Pickering) was the perfect steadying foil to the bustling Higgins.
I don’t believe that he was not educated at Cheltenham, Harrow and Cambridge! Lyn Manderson steered Mrs Pearce expertly through what is, I believe, an important yet underappreciated role in My Fair Lady.
Freddy Eynsford Hill (Raymond Williams) did all that was expected of him, including being pushed over by his own daughter! His rendition of the classic, “On the Street Where You Live” was beautifully done.
Others added their small but delightful cameos to the show: the snooty Mrs Eynsford-Hill (Ethne Turnbull), the Queen of Transylvania (Yvonne Combe), Mrs Hopkins (Eileen Rideout), Butler (Dave Jones), and sorely-tried bartender (Andrew Dunn).
Then there was Campbell McNeil, so loud, colourful and obnoxious as Zoltan Karpthy that he lit up the stage when he came on.
And Maureen Gillie! What versatility! We know she excels at knock-about comedy; here she was subdued, witty and precisely perfect as Mrs Higgins.
Alfred P. Dolittle, the dustman, was played by Laurie Pettitt. He had the looks, presence and singing voice for the part, and played it well, but I would like to have seen him relax enough to play it with more confidence, a confidence well-merited by his talent.
He was ably supported (in the end literally) by his two henchmen, Harry (Kevin Rideout) and Jamie (Eddie Stewart).
The singing of “I’m getting married in the morning” by these three and the chorus was a real treat, enjoyed by audience and cast alike.
The ladies and gentlemen of the chorus added greatly to our enjoyment of the show.
Whether at Covent Garden, Prof. Higgins’ Study, or dressed magnificently at Ascot, they lent colour, movement, and musicality to the show.
On a couple of occasions they cleverly froze into a tableau, thereby increasing the impact of the scene.
It was good to see four ‘juniors’ taking part (Allison Flockhart, Rachel Frater, Jamie Grant and Max Rutherford) and charming us with a quite unexpected appearance as jockeys in the Ascot opening race.
I have a complaint about the matching set of dancers (all tall, all slim, all beautiful): we did not see anything like enough of them.
That was not the fault of the choreographers, nor of the producer, but of the constricted stage. That the chorus and the dancers made such good use of the space available is highly commendable.
The same praise must go to the scene designers and shifters, not only for their ingenuity but also for their slick scene changes. I thought the set for Professor Higgins’ study particularly satisfying.
I was sitting close enough to the orchestra to appreciate their commitment and expertise. The group has found a real asset in Stephen Bender; his calm and professional leadership of the music deserves the highest praise.
Clearly as much went on off-stage as on it and for that our thanks go to The Dream Team who were so good we didn’t notice them. But we did notice the results of the work of the dressing-up department (costumes, wardrobe, hair and make-up) for without them the show would have lost a great deal of its aah-factor.
The Ascot scene was breathtaking (especially the hats!), but then so were the Embassy Ball and the street scene at Covent Garden.
Sensitive sound management allowed us to follow the story without distraction and the lights were cleverly used, particularly in the “Quit Professor Higgins” song to switch our attention back and forth between chorus and principals.
The front of house team gave the audience the warm welcome we have now come to expect.
I have seen many performances of My Fair Lady, most of them by professional companies. I have seen better individual parts, better scenes, better sets, heard better bits of singing, but I do not think I have experienced a better all-round performance that this one, nor one so completely satisfying.
It was warm, intimate, engrossing and delightful to hear and see.
The man next to me had never seen My Fair Lady before. His verdict was “tremendous”. And so it was.
Congratulations, Professor Pauline! You did it! Bravo Eyemouth Variety Group!
Chorus: Martin Aitchison, Marcy Bender, Katie Blatchley, Janis Boyes, Aileen Bunker, Lewis Davie, Mavis Eslor, Christine Henderson, George Kay, Barbara Pettitt, Karen Short, Lilian Smith, Rebecca Turner.
Dancers: Amy Clement, Tasmin McKechnie, Lucy Ruthven, Rachael Smith
Orchestra: Stephen Bender (piano), Rebecca Nicholson (flute), Brian Jackson, Fred Baxendale, Rebecca (violins), Bryan Maynard (Bass), Sam Lord (Clarinet), Willie Dobie (Trombone), David Douglas (drums), Mike Hardy (trumpet), Pamela Toward (percussion).
Back stage and Props: The Dream Team (Alison, David, Hilary, Joan, Leigh).
Scenery: Border Studios.
Lights: James and Karen Battison.
Sound: John Peakman, Pamela Toward, Reckless Productions.
Wardrobe: May Jappy.
Costumes: Utopia Costumes of Dundee
Make-up: Karen Smith, Linda Thompson, Sarah Queenan, Jemma Landells.
Hair: Wynd and Wave
Prompt: Moira Gillie.
Publicity and PA to Pauline: Joan Blatchley.
Front of House: Joyce Birne and Friends.
Choreography: Lilian Smith and Pamela Toward.
Musical Director: Stephen Bender.
Producer: Pauline Grieve.
