The News Herald (Willoughby, OH)
Older show still has plenty of youth
“My Fair Lady” is a classic Tony-Award-winning Broadway musical that was made into a popular box office film… well over 50 years ago.
Even with popular tunes like “I Could Have Danced All Night,” “With a Little Bit of Luck” and “On the Street Where You Live,” that’s not the kind of pedigree that seems likely to attract the kiddies. And yet, there are young thespians are amongst the cast!
Are you surprised? Not if you are reading this weekly column.
Did you catch the show yet? Anecdotal reviews I have gotten throughout the month have been very positive.
The show opened June 22 at the barn in Madison and runs through July 14. Adapted from George Bernard Shaw’s play and Gabriel Pascal’s motion picture “Pygmalion,” this enduring audience favorite features book and lyrics by Alan Jay Lerner and music by Frederick Loewe.
The show is rated for general audiences suitable for family entertainment.
Tickets for all performances are available by calling the box office at 440-428-7092, Wednesdays through Sundays from 3 to 7 p.m., or online at www.rabbitrunonline.org. Tickets are $24 for adults, $22 for seniors and students, and $11 for youth 12 and under. For group packages and rates call 440-428-5913.
All shows for “My Fair Lady” begin at 7:30 p.m. Rabbit Run Theater is located at 5648 W. Chapel Road in Madison.
July 14, is Rabbit Run’s annual summer fundraiser, “My Fair Bunny, a Loverly Evening.” A garden party will include heavy hors d’oeuvres, sandwiches, salads and more while guests bid on silent, Chinese and live auction items. The evening culminates with a performance of “My Fair Lady.”
Tickets are $60 a person or $520 for a table of eight for this special event. Tickets are available online, at the box office or the RRCAA office at 440-428-5913.
Also available are raffle tickets for a chance to win a trip to London. The winner will enjoy a week in a two-bedroom condo in Hyde Park near Kensington as well as a voucher for $2,500 to be used for travel expenses and/or entertainment. The winner may instead choose a $4,000 cash option.
Only 250 tickets will be sold. Tickets are $50 each and available at the box office, online or at the Rabbit Run office. All proceeds benefit RRCAA.
One of the aforementioned young thespians that is a part of this extravaganza is recent home-school graduate Stephen Sandham. Interested in dancing, singing, beatboxing, snowboarding/skiing, and being an uncle, this 18-year-old has already appeared in numerous productions, most recently “Annie Get Your Gun” at the Geauga Lyric Theater Guild, “The Little Mermaid” and “Beauty and the Beast” at the Fine Arts Association.
Sandham is especially enjoying “My Fair Lady.” Why?
“For the pure joy of it,” Sandham tells me. “There truly is no other feeling like the camaraderie of getting to work with both young, old, experienced and new actors alike.”
Sandham has previously gone “Into the Woods” at Rabbit Run, and is thrilled to be back.
“The aesthetic is unbeatable,” he says of the old barn theater. “Rabbit Run has the ability to transport you into London and the world of ‘My Fair Lady’ unlike any other theater I know.”
Although it is a classic, Sandham thinks the show has plenty to offer for modern audiences, and he has some things to offer, too.
“Intelligent humor for one, the warmth and beauty of the music, and the message that it is not how someone looks or speaks that determines their class, but how they are treated,” he says of the show. “My voice is probably the biggest thing that I’ve worked on. Hitting the notes while also retaining a British accent is a bit of a challenge at times, but such a joy to do.”
“With a Little Bit of Luck” — and a little of your time — you can see Sandham and some more young thespians in action yourself. I’ll share a couple more with you next week.
Do you have a production you wish to see featured? E-mail stevecouch@ windstream.net, follow me @StevenRCouch on Twitter or join our “Young Thespians” Facebook group and post your show information.