MY FAIR LADY         Toads Stage Musical Company     Princess Theatre, Torquay

Director: Iain Douglas       Choreographer: Aubrey Budd             M.D. John Amery

What a pleasure to come to the Princess Theatre to see a production and be able to hear every word.  The change of sound designer (Adam Waller) was certainly a good move as the balance of sound for this show was excellent.  This company always put on high quality performances, they have a lot of talent and experience to draw on, so it is for this reason I feel I can be a little extra critical. 

I felt that the opening scene lacked conviction. It is set outside the opera house at the end of a performance on a rainy night. The star cloth at the back rather took that away and there was not enough hustle and bustle. The men should have been rushing from the theatre entrance hailing taxis and then rushing back to shelter their ladies under umbrellas, it therefore lacked the impact this show needs at the start.  The Costermongers looked far too clean and well dressed, not a bit of dirt to be seen anywhere. These were supposed to be the poorer people who had been out in the rain all day and the ladies looked as if they were in their Sunday best.  However the other costumes were magnificent.

The choreography was very well performed and very safe, I feel that this company has the capabilities to be stretched to do more sophisticated routines. 

The orchestra played well and the balance with the singing was excellent, but the chorus needed to be careful with some of the high notes as they were sometimes a little flat, particularly in the Ascot Gavotte.

Lynsey Dart playing Eliza was a star; she never put a foot wrong and obviously enjoyed playing the role.  Mrs. Pearce (Julie Hale) played a charming, motherly character which I felt was much better than the rather stern portrayals I have seen in the past. Doolittle gave a strong performance with very good comic timing and Maggie Campbell as Mrs. Higgins was perfect for the role. Higgins and Pickering both gave strong performances and all were well supported by the smaller roles. The show was slick and had pace, very necessary for a production as long as this and was very well received by the audience.