Sumptuous Setting
With snatches of songs from My Fair Lady ringing in my memory, to say I was excited about seeing the Bailey Theatre Company’s staging of Pygmalion is something of an understatement. The iconic Audrey Hepburn’s feisty portrayal of Eliza Doolittle would certainly be a hard act to follow but nevertheless I was more than impressed by this production. Any worries about comedy cockney accents and over-acting were laid to rest in the opening scene with the witty exchanges between the aristocrats and the London commoners. The distinction between the two classes in Victorian London was not only made clear with some praiseworthy acting but also through the excellent costumes, for which credit must go to the designers Delyth Williams and Emma Brailey. From the bedraggled rags of Eliza and her fellow flower girls to the elaborate dresses of the haughty Eynesford-Hills, all the outfits suited the characters perfectly: particularly the quirky and rather garish suit of Professor Higgins, which reflected his eccentric personality and outlandish character.

The rather drab, grey set was disappointing at first, but then the curtain rose to reveal the sumptuous bachelor apartment of Professor Higgins, showing great attention to detail. The second scene excellently displayed the acting talents of Tom Thorp as the pompous, self-important but ultimately endearing Professor and Ben Udy as the courteous, reasonable and intelligent Colonel Pickering. The animated conversation between these two intellectuals was amusing and well delivered, illustrating the similarities and differences between the characters. Despite very strong performances from the two males leads, the women in the production were not to be overshadowed. Praise must go to Nicola Jones for her excellent, often scene-stealing, portrayal of the rather matriarchal, snooty and pragmatic Mrs Pearce, who had no trouble putting the two ‘gentlemen’ in their place. Furthermore the audience was properly introduced to the infamous Eliza Doolittle, whose sassy cockney wit was done justice by Rebecca Mackinnon, who played her with a mixture of childish naivety and kerbstone astuteness. The only slightly disappointing part of this scene was the appearance of Eliza’s father Alfred Doolittle who, though Alistair Hodkinson gave an earnest performance, was not quite the scoundrel I had imagined.

Good-Natured Exasperation
Another effective, though less impressive set change took us to the parlour of Professor Higgins’ long-suffering mother, whose good-natured exasperation came across perfectly through Lucy Cornell’s performance, showing the wide range of the actress who last term played Nora, the initially childish, yet ultimately rebellious and self-assured young protagonist of Ibsen’s A Doll’s House. There followed perhaps the most famous scene of the play; that is, the first test of the two phonetician’s experiment. Mackinnon’s excellent delivery of Eliza’s lines conveyed the dramatic irony of the scene as the gullible Eynesford-Hills hung onto every word of her new ‘fashionable’ way of speaking. An incredibly amusing scene was topped off by Will Steel’s subtle love-struck looks of longing from the corner as a dopey, but likable Freddie.

The second half of the play opened with the embassy ball – the true test as to whether Eliza could be passed off as a genuine duchess. The set was once again transformed and some skilful choreography saw fifteen people ballroom dancing in such a reasonably small space. The acting, though amusing, with Higgins playing the fool about Eliza’s origins and then his ostentatious gloating over his success, nevertheless seemed a little rushed for all the effort made.

The Sprit Of The Age
After a rather laborious scene change we were once again delivered back to Professor Higgins’ apartments where the two intellectuals tactlessly congratulated themselves on their work, blissfully unaware of the quietly seething Eliza. Though the two male actors were consistent in their characters, I was a little disappointed that in becoming such a model of politeness and courtesy our flower-girl protagonist seemed to have lost some of the cockney charm of the previous scenes and sometimes she seemed like a totally different woman. Fortunately, in the final scene Eliza’s feisty spirit had returned as she coldly, but comically, shunned the flustering Professor and left the audience hanging in limbo, wondering about her future and what truly distinguishes ‘class from class and soul from soul.’

This was an extremely enjoyable performance of a well-known and well-liked play, with some top class acting and excellent set and costume design that helped the audience to get into the spirit of the age. I was therefore rather surprised and disappointed that the Assembly Rooms was not full to the brim – people missed out on a very entertaining night of the theatre.