The Alluvion Stage Company opened its production of “My Fair Lady” Friday, Sept. 11, at the Tower Theater. The show will run until Sept. 27.
The musical follows Eliza Doolittle, played by guest actress Evan Bertram. Eliza is a poor English girl who sells flowers.
“At the beginning of the show, she’s free,” said Bertram. “She doesn’t have much, but she has her autonomy, and she’s a free spirit.”
Eliza soon encounters Henry Higgins, played by Chris Nelson, professor and program director of theatre. Higgins is a self-absorbed bachelor who bets he can pass off the poor commoner as a duchess.
“Higgins is a big English brat,” said Nelson. “He’s overbearing, and he likes things his way. He likes to have people at his hands and feet serving him.”
Once the bet is placed, Higgins embarks on a difficult journey with Doolittle. The characters work to tame Doolittle’s accent to help her fit in with London society.
The musical is based on George Bernard Shaw’s play (1913) and Gabriel Pascal’s movie, “Pygmalion,” (1938).
“It deals with a lot of themes of worth and how we treat each other,” Bertram said. “These two characters are seemingly very different but are actually very similar in their need to be understood.”
Nelson said modern audiences may be uncomfortable with the intense emotions in the play. However, he hopes they see traces of their own real-life emotions through the characters.
“It’s very in your face, but it has so much truth, so much subtlety, so much nuance and real people,” Nelson said.
Alluvion Stage Company is a non-profit professional theater company that provides family-friendly entertainment with a professional and student cast. Senior Josh Gilmore said the opportunity to work with professionals provides great experience.
“I think the biggest takeaway is knowing that what we’re being taught here is effective,” Gilmore said. “We have confidence that we’re moving in the right direction, and it’s a cool opportunity to make connections.”
The professionals working on the production find the opportunity mutually beneficial as well.
“They (the students) were so professional, so encouraging to me,” Bertram said. “It’s really special to see how much they care about their faith and love the Lord and how that infuses their work as actors.”
According to Nelson, students at Liberty University are trained to be a light to the fallen world, and they get to put that into practice while working with guest artists.
“That’s why we exist. We want students to be that type of light when they do get into the professional world,” Nelson said. “It’s nice that they have that opportunity with Alluvion. It’s great to be that light to these folks who come in as guests.”
The cast expects audiences will enjoy this Edwardian-era musical.
“It’s going to be a lot of fun,” said Gilmore, who plays Karpathy and George in the production. “It’s not something that feels dated or like it doesn’t apply. It’s a beautiful story, even for those who might not like musical theatre. Give it a shot; I think it’s worth seeing.”
For tickets, visit the ticket office website.
Combs is a feature editor for The Liberty Champion.
Video was shot by Joshua Gross and Ashlyn Lemons and edited by Ashlyn Lemons.