arrogance<\/em> and it\u2019s all wonderful and heartbreaking and glorious. Meanwhile Eliza\u2019s dad is a good-for-nothing who sings a 20-minute song about getting married.<\/p>\n\u00a0<\/p>\n
I\u2019m sure you love the movie and everything (and the original ending), but this production, I have shivers just thinking about it. Actual chill bumps. I wish it wasn\u2019t closing; I would see it every year. Bartlett Sher\u2019s impeccable direction and his grasp of Golden Age musicals have never been on more impressive display. Every inch of this show is perfectly orchestrated, including the lush orchestra playing these classic melodies. Every song is a highlight. I especially love the written-to-be-a-highlight \u201cOn the Street Where You Live\u201d, now performed by Christian Dante White, the new Freddy, who has quickly proved himself to be Broadway\u2019s new Kyle Dean Massey (i.e. a wonderful replacement). As Alfred Doolittle, Alexander Gemignani was out, but his understudy Joe Hart was wonderful (and actually looked older \u2013 Benanti and Gemignani are LITERALLY THE SAME AGE, smdh). And I love that if you choose one ensemble member to watch, you\u2019ll get a whole other story from this person; they\u2019re all doing nonstop character work that builds an entire world to house the story of Eliza and Higgins.<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n
And Eliza and Higgins are so much more than I ever thought before seeing this production. Originally, with Lauren Ambrose, who brought so much acting precision to Eliza and made so much of the character, Eliza and Henry seemed to be on equal footing, in terms of whose story it was. I loved their interplay, and even though Eliza has some of the best and biggest songs in musical theatre, it was a treat to see deeply into this character with the help of an actress who is primarily an actress, not a singer. On the other hand, Benanti is an actress who is primarily an incredible singer (and was clearly sick and still went on and still sounded fabulous, though a little weaker than I know she can be, so deserves all the kudos). A Broadway staple for a remarkably long time considering how young she is, she was obviously great (though her English accent was\u2026not), and looked amazing in the new costumes. But the subtle differences in portrayal showed a different relationship. With her Eliza, she was sassy and brave from the start, and you never doubted that she would always be able to take care of herself and put herself first when necessary. She was always going to be okay. With Ambrose, Eliza was much more delicate, much more in need of confidence and growth, making her decision at the end all the more emotional.<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n
Although the ending is still beyond emotional (I cried like a BABY and might again right now thinking about it okay yep there we go), I felt it this time entirely from Henry\u2019s perspective. Now, it\u2019s clear that this is primarily a show about Henry Higgins, something I never realized before. Above all, this is a show about Henry\u2019s personal failings, the ones that keep him from knowing true happiness. I never knew it, but My Fair Lady<\/em> is honestly a tragedy, and it\u2019s mainly a tragedy of toxic masculinity. I KNOW! WHO KNEW! All of this profound emotional impact is entirely due to the flawless and heartbreaking performance of Harry Hadden-Paton, a fully formed, fully feeling Higgins I cannot imagine ever being surpassed. Ever. I love me some Tony Shalhoub but it\u2019s a crime that this performance didn\u2019t win a Tony, I see this now. HP sauce shows Henry\u2019s entire life and upbringing and habits and his discomfort in changing any of it, in each facial expression, each line delivery. It\u2019s all incredible, and by the end it\u2019s all heartbreaking. I honestly can\u2019t believe how much he accomplished with this performance in creating what seemed like a real flawed person up on that stage. This production is one of the greatest of all time and I think it\u2019s in large part because of his performance. I\u2019m so glad I saw it again and so upset that HE COULDN\u2019T JUST STOP BEING AN ASSHOLE AND BE HONEST AND BE HAPPY GODDAMMIT HERE WE GO AGAIN THE END.<\/p>\n\u00a0<\/p>\n
INFORMATION<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n Since Lincoln Center is a nonprofit and they like stupid turnaround and crap like that I guess, the show is closing July 7, so if you are in NYC or like can feasibly get there in the next week, you REALLY G-D SHOULD.<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
It\u2019s Theatre Thursday! Today\u2019s show is My Fair Lady on Broadway, closing on July 7 because of reasons, I guess. Remember when I reviewed this new […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":10251,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[147],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-10250","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-entertainment"],"yoast_head":"\n
A Return Trip to My Fair Lady at Lincoln Center Before It Leaves Us for No Good Reason - Laughfrodisiac<\/title>\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n\t \n\t \n\t \n \n \n \n \n \n\t \n\t \n\t \n