My Fair Lady

I confess to being fortunate enough to have visited the Fakenham Community Centre a good few times in the past. I have substituted for Area 5 representative, Sue DuPont on occasion and I have even been over as a fully paid up audience member to see my good friend Grace Burton in ‘Legally Blonde’. Never have I been disappointed. So, it was with a full heart and a spring in my step as (at the behest of the aforementioned Mrs DP) I set out to see FADLOS, and their latest production which just happened to be ‘My Fair Lady’.

The welcome is always warm here … admittedly I was wearing the medallion of NODA but even so …. they do make you feel very much at home. Upon arrival, our tickets were allocated and I subscribed generously to the raffle ticket fund, purchased my programme and took my seat. The auditorium was pleasingly full and as the curtain went up on Act One I was pleased to observe that the set was a triumph. A multi-level arrangement (design by Ben Francis and embellishment by Maria Cutting, Vicki Armes, Jess Stocking and crew) that gave height and depth to all that took place in or around it. The way it opened and closed with relative ease made the many scene changes quick, efficient and largely free form men/women in black. In short, it was just the job. In fact, it was actually a little bit more than that with the interior decoration particularly impressing me. Lighting (design by Tom Ferris and execution by Adrian Walford) did all that it needed to do without being overly spectacular or obtrusive. Sound (Purple Box AV) was fine and dandy with costumes (Dereham Theatre Costumes) all excellent. Complimentary Make up and Wigs (Blanks Canvas) were very much the same with plenty to go around the plentiful cast. Incidental props (uncredited except for the gramophone lent by Tanya Jarvis) caused me no offence whatsoever!

It has to be said that this was a pretty large cast and the chorus and ensemble all looked enormously enthusiastic and pretty well disciplined throughout. Choreography (Ben Francis) was fine … but perhaps a little simplistic at times. Those times being the very few occasions in this title when there was actually any dancing to be done. This is not a large routine show and opportunities for hoofing are few and far between.

In the supporting cast I enjoyed Lucy Ferris as Mrs Hopkins, Jackie Overton as Mrs Eynsford-Hill and Alex Chidichimo as Harry/Zoltan Karpathy. There were solid performances from Helen Bailey as Mrs Higgins and Michael Silvester as Freddy Eynsford-Hill, who both seemed to know what they were doing and why they were doing it!

I absolutely loved Victoria Perryman as the long-suffering housekeeper, Mrs Pearce, I have always considered this to be a much more important role than a lot of people think and pivotal to the story dynamics. She was calm and serene throughout and made those Higgins study scenes so much more than they would have been without her. I also liked Robin Hawkes in the Stanley Holloway role as Alfred Doolittle and although he did not put a foot wrong technically …. I didn’t warm to him in the way I was expecting. A fine singing voice that helped him deliver the two showstoppers ‘A Little Bit of Luck’ and ‘Get Me to the Church on Time’.

I have no prior knowledge of Chloe Bailey, but as Eliza Doolittle, the flower girl plucked from obscurity and thrust into the upper classes, she was delightful. A good singing voice and a vulnerable characterisation both of which came together magnificently during the Wouldn’t It Be Lovely routine. The same could not be said of Ben Francis as the ultimate male chauvinist, Linguist Professor Henry Higgins. Mr Francis was on fine form and took the inherent misogyny to hitherto unseen (at least by me) levels using his keen comic timing and mighty stage presence to get every laugh out of the opportunities for comedy that presented themselves. An accomplished performance from an accomplished performer making a first-rate job of ‘I’ve Grown Accustomed to Her Face’, singing and speaking the lyrics in classic Rex Harrison style.

Penultimate paragraph honours were decided after just a few scenes and were never challenged as Fakenham Veteran, Richard Tree took the comic lead part of Colonel Pickering and devoured the stage. Pickering is normally played as a likeable but dithering old codger which I suspect is how it was written, but the Director clearly had other ideas as he put the part in the hands of the amateur performer with the finest timing that I have seen anywhere within 30 miles of Kings Lynn. A mesmerising piece of character acting that elevated the sidekick role to right up alongside the leads. The only thing he didn’t get right was the ‘Pline Cike’ … which died a painful death. That notwithstanding bravo Mr Tree … simply inspirational.

.. and bravo FADLOS, I read the Directors notes over a bottled beer before the curtain went up and detected a distinct … after the Lord Mayors show feeling in the aftermath of Sister Act. My Fair Lady is very old fashioned in comparison. Slow and even after a revamp .. very, very long. It looks dated and even with great scenery and fine costumes it just doesn’t zip along like the modern shows. My compliments to Mr Francis and Miss Ferris for sharing the direction and getting the most out of it. As Mr Francis says in his notes this My Fair Lady turned into something beautiful. What was most certainly very beautiful was the outstanding 8-piece combo that dished out the music. Under the un-wavering baton of Musical Director, Joanna Kemp, this orchestra was on fire right from the overture. A wonderful and well-balanced sound that was mixed perfectly with the vocals on stage. I don’t remember hearing any bad notes … but what do I know? I do remember on several occasions just listening to the music and thinking it may be a little out of date … but this is a top-notch score! Thank you for having me FADLOS .. can I come back for White Christmas?

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