Local performer Tracy Neff will portray Eliza Doolittle in Royal City Musical Theatre’s production of My Fair Lady.
“I think it’s an amazing part to play because it’s really multi-faceted,” says Neff.
The musical, which premiered on Broadway in the mid-1950s, is a story about Eliza, a Cockney flower girl who takes speech lessons from a professor so she may pass as a lady.
The way she speaks informs many other things about her as a person, notes Neff, adding the story deals a lot with the class system.
“All said and done, I have to do two totally different dialects,” she says, adding the role is challenging vocally.
Another challenge is the fact Neff is juggling quite a few commitments these days. She also teaches at South Delta Secondary and the Delta Community Music School and works with another local performer, Tony Barton, on shows. SDSS is staging a musical two weeks after My Fair Lady closes.
This is her first time working with Royal City Musical Theatre. She says the group has a family feeling about it and that the cast is fantastic.
My Fair Lady is based on George Bernard Shaw’s Pygmalion. The musical was a long-running Broadway show and was then made into what has become an iconic film. The musical premiered on Broadway in 1956 and ran for a then-record 2,717 performances before closing in 1962.
Royal City Musical Theatre’s production of My Fair Lady is directed by Max Reimer, while musical director James Bryson conducts a live 22-piece orchestra.
There will be a preview tonight at 7:30 p.m. while opening night is tomorrow at 7:30 p.m. at Massey Theatre, 735 Eighth Ave., New Westminster. The musical runs through April 26.
Tickets cost $26 to $47. Contact the box office at masseytheatre.com or call 604-521-5050. For further information visit www.royalcitymusicaltheatre.com.
Neff notes her understudy will be performing in the April 22 show.
