MFL Review

A long and detailed review of My Fair Lady at Limelight Magazine. Good words for Alex!

"Heading the outstanding cast is British actor Alex Jennings, reprising a role that earned him an Olivier Award in 2003. His Higgins has deepened over the years from arrogant tyrant to slightly bewildered, prissy academic. Nowadays we would likely consider this misanthrope ‘on the spectrum’. One of Shaw’s keys is when Mrs Higgins refers to her son and Pickering as a “pretty pair of babies, playing with your live doll” and Jennings captures compellingly the curiously infantilised aspect of the man. As a theatrical technician, he is second to none, every line considered and connected to build and explore a complex human being. His lead-in to I’m an Ordinary Man reveals no railing misogynist but a fellow who has likely been burned somewhere along the line. His panegyric to the poetry of language really does inspire. The points at which we see his growing feelings for Eliza are beautifully plotted, making Jennings' Higgins seductively sympathetic at times. The songs are delivered with confidence and finesse, just on the voice enough to prove he has the notes, while relishing the text in a bravura display of Lerner-esque acerbic patter. When it comes, I’ve Grown Accustomed to her Face takes us to a place of considerable pathos and loneliness – just as it should."

Full review at Limelight Magazine.