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Fair play to you my lady

There are times when this job can be an absolute pleasure and last Tuesday night at Loughborough Town Hall was one of those occasions when Greasepaint performed My Fair Lady.

I'd actually never seen the whole production the entire way through before, even when it was on television as something usually got in the way.

But I knew it enough to know that it features some of favourite songs from the musicals, principally, On The Street Where You Live, Wouldn't It Be Loverly and I'm An Ordinary Man.

All three were highlights of Greasepaint's production but to single them out above others would be unfair, such was the strong showing from all the cast.

From the street dancers of London town to the aristocrats of Ascot, the show is a contrast of class clashes and cultures with the rich, intelligent but socially flawed middle classes meeting the poor but honest and humanistic working classes.

And a highly entertaining meeting of differing minds it is too as emotions range from sadness and sympathy for both sides, to outright comedy. Which side you feel is right, regardless of what the show may say, depends on your own social views.

Director Shane Perry chose his cast well with Gilly Grigg revelling as Eliza, Ken Ellis amusing as her father Alfred and Mark Perry richly entertaining as the slightly mad Colonel Pickering.

But leading it all was Keith Reynolds as the cantankerous Henry Higgins, a part he was seemingly born to play despite his modest protestations afterwards that it was the script that made him good.

Nonsense. Scripts are words on a bit of paper, they can't effect style, delivery, and human intervention. Keith did the lot, and then some - he was quite excellent.

But even the best of characters has to give some ground to the score which is one of the best around and was handled with his usual assuredness by Jonathan Orton while choreographers Carl Edwards and Jeanette Patrick-Cooper gave us some routines that ranged from ballroom dance to a damned good East-end knees up.

Luverly.

John Smith, The Echo

Copyright © Greasepaint Productions - Last modified 15/06/2003