Dame Julie Andrews is going back to her theatre roots to direct an upcoming production of My Fair Lady in Australia, TV Newsroom reports.
“I look forward to… beginning the process of bringing this great musical to life once again”, Andrews said, when her involvement in the latest production was announced six decades after she first played the role.
Based on George Bernard Shaw’s Pygmalion, My Fair Lady tells of the flower girl mentored by Professor Henry Higgins and transformed into a society lady.
Andrews starred as the leading “lady” Eliza Doolittle in the original 1956 Broadway musical. She will take her role of director along with producer John Frost and Opera Australia artistic director Lyndon Terracini. They will perform the Lerner & Loewe score that includes “The Rain in Spain” and “I Could Have Danced All Night“.
The production will feature the original costume designs of Cecil Beaton, who won two Oscars for the costume design and set decoration of the 1964 film adaptation (starring Audrey Hepburn as Doolittle).
Andrews will direct My Fair Lady to mark the 60th anniversary of the beloved drama. She has also directed stage productions of her children’s book The Great American Musical.
The new show will premiere on August 2016 as part of Opera Australia’s own 60th birthday celebrations
