Before I begin, I must confess that I’m not exactly a huge fan of George Bernard Shaw. It isn’t that I don’t appreciate his contribution to the dramatic arts, I just don’t know a great deal about it. Don’t worry though, I’ve done my research.
Although Shaw’s work has recently experienced something of a revival, most people (myself included) will probably be more familiar with George Cukor’s 1964 film adaptation starring Audrey Hepburn as the loveable Cockney heroine, Eliza Doolittle. First performed in 1912, and originally subtitled ‘A romance in five acts’, Pygmalion documents the trials and tribulations of a working-class flower girl in London’s Covent Garden during her transformation from common guttersnipe to gentrified lady.
A gloriously sharp critique of the British class system, Shaw’s play is currently celebrating it’s centenary year in 2014 with a brand new run starring Alistair McGowan and Rachel Barry. In a witty, playful and often hilarious portrayal of the academic Henry Higgins, The Big Impression star balances deft characterisation, comedy and sincerity to great success. Short-sighted, ignorant and yet bursting with enthusiasm, McGowan’s professor seems rather like a sinister naughty schoolboy, rarely failing to delight with his tricks.
Newcomer Rachel Barry’s rendering of Eliza is funny, charming and likeable; her metamorphosis convincing; and her campaign for independence still powerfully relevant. Although Shaw never intended his heroine as a romantic figure, by the close of Act 5, Barry’s performance has tugged on our heartstrings to such an extent that it’s hard not to see her in a sentimental, if unconventional, light. In her emphatic quest for equality and independence, she has earned both our respect and our sympathies.
Paul Brightwell brings forth a much needed addition of humanity as the generous phoneticist Colonel Pickering, whilst Jamie Foreman does wonders for the script’s comic value as Eliza’s drunkard father, Alfred. Director David Grindley has done excellent job translating Shaw’s forward thinking vision of equality, transgression and social development into a production that is thought-provoking, energetic and thoroughly entertaining.