Lerner & Loewe’s My Fair Lady Makes Philadelphia Premiere at the Academy of Music March 11-16
February 5, 2008
Michael Le Poer Trench
"A standing ovation for this most fair and great lady!"
Cameron Mackintosh/The National Theatre of Great Britain’s award-winning West End Production of My Fair Lady
Tickets on sale now!
The Cameron Mackintosh and The National Theatre of Great Britain’s new production of Lerner & Loewe’s My Fair Lady makes its Philadelphia premiere at the Academy of Music for a limited engagement March 11-16, 2008 as part of a national tour. Lerner & Loewe’s My Fair Lady comes to the U.S. direct from its 2001 West End run and U.K. national tour that began fall 2005. Part of the Cadillac Broadway Series, tickets for the award-winning production are on sale now. For more information, or to see a video preview, please visit www.myfairladythemusical.com.
Tickets ranging in price from $25 to $77.50 are on sale now. A limited number of premium box seats are available for $100.00. Tickets can be purchased by calling 215-731-3333, online at www.kimmelcenter.org/broadway, at the Kimmel Center box office, Broad & Spruce Streets (open daily 10am to 6pm) or at the Academy of Music box office (during performances only). Groups of 15 or more will receive discounts for select performances by calling 215-790-5883 or 866-276-2947. Tickets can also be purchased as part of a Choose 3 subscription package by calling 215-893-1955.
Performances include: Tuesday through Thursday evenings (March 11-13) at 7:30pm; Friday and Saturday evenings (March 14 & 15) at 8pm; Sunday evening (March 16) at 6:30pm; and matinee performances on Saturday at 2pm and Sunday at 1pm.
Christopher Cazenove, one of England’s most respected stage and screen actors best known to U.S. audiences as Ben Carrington on television’s "Dynasty" and Lisa O’Hare, who most recently starred as the title role of Mary Poppins in London, will star as Professor Henry Higgins and Eliza Doolittle, roles they originated on the extended U.K. national tour.
Also featured as Mrs. Higgins will be acclaimed theater and film star Marni Nixon (singing voice of Eliza Doolittle in "My Fair Lady" feature film). Lisa O’Hare is appearing with the permission of Actors’ Equity Association. The Producers gratefully acknowledge Actors’ Equity Association for its assistance of this production.
Hailed as "A stellar piece of work…with breathtaking production values" by The Tennessean, this production of My Fair Lady takes a stunning leap forward with its reimagining of many features of this cherished classic, delivering a magnificent and relevant theatre experience for 21st century audiences.
Also featured in the U.S. Tour premiere are Tim Jerome as Alfred P. Doolittle, Walter Charles as Colonel Hugh Pickering, Barbara Marineau as Mrs. Pierce, Justin Bohon as Freddy Eynsford-Hill and at certain performances the role of Eliza Doolittle is played by Dana DeLisa.
The ensemble comprises David Abeles, Harlen Bengel, Eric Briarley, Wilson Bridges, Ronald L. Brown, Debra Cardona, Elizabeth DeRosa, Kyle DesChamps, Bill Dietrich, Michael J. Farina, Warren Freeman, Jazmin Gorsline, Robin Haynes, Marnee Hollis, Lisa Kassay, Lainie Munro, Adam Laird, Cathy Newman, Georga Osborne, Lauren Pastorek, Byron St. Cyr, Jesse Swimm, David Tankersley, Stephanie Van Duynhoven, Erin Willis and Lee Zarrett.
My Fair Lady has book and lyrics by Alan Jay Lerner and music by Frederick Loewe. It is adapted from Bernard Shaw’s play Pygmalion and Gabriel Pascal’s motion picture and features one of Broadway’s most beloved scores including "The Rain in Spain," "I Could Have Danced All Night" and "Get Me to the Church on Time."
This production of My Fair Lady originally opened at the National Theatre of Great Britain March 2001 before transferring to the Theatre Royal Drury Lane on London’s West End July 2001 where it ran for two and a half years.
This new production was hailed by the London Daily Mail as "The revival against which all others will be measured," and the London Daily Telegraph as "Probably the greatest musical of all time." U.S. critics were equally unanimous in their praise: "A joyous smash revival" hailed Ben Brantley of The New York Times and Richard Christiansen of The Chicago Tribune raved "Sumptuous and stunning! An inspired revival."
The show opened to record-breaking advance sales and went on to win five Laurence Olivier Awards, including 'Outstanding Musical Production' and 'Best Theatre Choreographer' for Matthew Bourne. In 2002 it received The Hilton Award for Outstanding Musical Production.
The U.S. national tour of My Fair Lady brings together the original U.K. artistic team with direction by four-time Tony® winner Trevor Nunn, choreography and musical staging by two-time Tony® winner Matthew Bourne, production design by Anthony Ward and lighting design by David Hersey. The musical supervisor is Stephen Brooker and the orchestrations are by William David Brohn, with the dance music arranged by Chris Walker. The sound is by Paul Groothuis. The Associate Choreographer is Fergus Logan. The Associate Director is Shaun Kerrison.
The original production of My Fair Lady opened at the Mark Hellinger Theatre, New York on March 15, 1956 where it ran for 2,717 performances – the longest- running musical of its day and still one of the top fifteen longest-running Broadway musicals of all time. It won eight 1956 Tony® Awards including Best Musical. My Fair Lady subsequently opened in London with the same cast on April 30, 1958 at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane, and it enjoyed a record-breaking five and a half year run. The 1964 film of My Fair Lady has become a beloved classic worldwide, winning eight 1964 Academy Awards® including Best Picture.
The Cameron Mackintosh/National Theatre of Great Britain production of Lerner & Loewe’s My Fair Lady is produced by NETworks Presentations, David Ian for Live Nation and Cameron Mackintosh.
The 2007-08 Cadillac Broadway Series marks the first full season of cooperation between Kimmel Center, Inc. and Shubert Organization, Inc., where theatrical presentations in Philadelphia will be presented at the Academy of Music and the Forrest Theatre. In addition to My Fair Lady, the 2007-08 season includes: African Footprint (Feb. 29-March 2); Annie (March 21-23); Hairspray (May 2-4); Gypsy (May 9-11); David Copperfield: An Intimate Evening of Grand Illusion (May 16-17); Oprah Winfrey Presents The Color Purple (June 17-July 13); Mamma Mia! (July 15-27); and Monty Python’s SPAMALOT (Aug.14-31).
All performances of Cadillac Broadway Series are supported by Cadillac, CITI, Target, WPVI-TV 6, The Philadelphia Coca-Cola Bottling Company, The Philadelphia Inquirer and The Philadelphia Daily News. American Airlines is the Official Airline of Cadillac Broadway Series.
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