Burning Coal's My Fair Lady Dances to New Life

Burning Coal Theatre Company's current production of Lerner and Loewe's My Fair Lady, which runs April 9-26 in Burning Coal's Murphey School Auditorium in Raleigh, is guided by an inventive vision from director Jerome Davis, who takes one of Broadway's most beloved classics and turns it into something fresh, witty, and visually alive. Performed in-the-round and carried by a cast of only eight actors, this production never feels small. Instead, it feels nimble, imaginative, and constantly in motion, as if the audience is watching a kaleidoscope turn. Characters, costumes, colors, and settings keep shifting before our eyes, offering new ways of seeing a show that we thought we already knew.

One of the great strengths of this production is the work of choreographer Flora Bare, whose contribution goes far beyond the dance numbers. Yes, the dances are lively and delightful; but what stands out just as much is the tightly choreographed movement of the entire production. Actors and scene changers, often dressed as maids, move scenery and bodies through the space with such precision and rhythm that the show seems to glide from moment to moment. That constant motion keeps the evening buoyant and theatrical. In a production staged in-the-round, where there is no place to hide and every transition is exposed, Bare's work is essential. She helps create the sense that the whole play is dancing.

At the center of it all are Natalie Reder as Eliza Doolittle and Derek Robinson as Professor Henry Higgins, the only two performers who remain in the same principal roles throughout the show. Reder delivers a wonderfully comic performance; but she also gives us an Eliza who is smart, perceptive, and strong. Her transformation is never merely decorative. She is not just a flower girl polished into a lady, but a woman of intelligence and will who gradually claims her own identity. Reder makes Eliza funny without ever making her foolish, and that balance is one of the production's greatest pleasures.

Natalie Reder (center) stars as Eliza Doolittle in Burning Coal's April 9-26 presentation of My Fair Lady (photo by Kevin Lord)

Robinson's Higgins is especially compelling. In this performance, he gives Rex Harrison a run for his money, but in a way that feels wholly his own. Robinson's Higgins is funnier, warmer, and more heartfelt. Robinson captures the character's vanity and bluster; but he also lets us glimpse the vulnerable, emotionally stunted man underneath. The result is a Higgins who is not only entertaining but unexpectedly human. That humanity comes shining through in scenes with Eliza, especially in the exuberant "The Rain in Spain," where the joy among Higgins, Eliza, and Alec Donaldson's Colonel Hugh Pickering becomes absolutely infectious.

Donaldson is a particular asset to the production. As Pickering, he is a wonderfully funny sidekick to Higgins, grounding the chaos with warmth and geniality. But because this is such a compact ensemble, he is also called upon to portray other comic roles; and he does so with remarkable ease. His versatility becomes part of the production's overall charm, reinforcing the idea that this London is populated by a troupe of theatrical shapeshifters.

Simon Kaplan brings great energy and swagger to dustman Alfred P. Doolittle, Eliza's irrepressible father. He kicks up a rumpus throughout the evening, and nowhere more memorably than in "Get Me to the Church on Time," where his comic force and physical exuberance help turn the number into one of the show's biggest pleasures. Kaplan understands that Doolittle is more than comic relief; he is a gleeful disruptor, and his scenes crackle because of it.

Natalie Reder and Derek Robinson star as Eliza Doolittle and Henry Higgins (photo by Kevin Lord)

As Freddy Eynsford-Hill, Byron Jennings II makes a strong impression, especially with a powerful rendition of "On the Street Where You Live." The number can sometimes drift into sentimentality, but here it lands with emotional and vocal force. Jennings gives Freddy genuine ardor, making him more than just a lovestruck plot device.

Adalynn Eller contributes an especially striking musical presence to the ensemble. Her high soprano voice soars through scene after scene and helps shape the sound of the production as a whole. In a show in which ensemble members are constantly changing identities, Eller's voice becomes one of the threads that ties the world together. She brings lift, brightness, and distinction to every scene that she enters.

Alec Donaldson (left) and Derek Robinson star as Colonel Pickering and Professor Higgins (photo by Kevin Lord)

Lenore Field is another standout, particularly as Mrs. Higgins, where she brings elegance, timing, and intelligence to the role. But what is even more impressive is the way that she seems to become a different person in every scene. Her comic range and physical control allow her to morph into a succession of characters with distinct postures, rhythms, and personalities. Each one is humorous, likable, and recognizably human. In a production built on transformation, Field may be its most nimble transformer.

Roné Roux Sargent is a formidable Mrs. Pearce, bringing gravity and warmth to the role of Higgins' housekeeper, who gradually comes to care deeply for Eliza. Sargent also joins the rest of the ensemble in populating the many other worlds of the show -- the ball, the races, the streets of Covent Garden -- contributing to the dazzling sense of theatrical multiplicity that defines the evening.

My Fair Lady stars Simon Kaplan as Eliza's father, dustman Alfred P. Doolittle (photo by Kevin Lord)

The musicians deserve special praise for the way that they enrich the production without ever overwhelming either the actors or the intimacy of Burning Coal's small theater. Christian L. Stahr, who serves as keyboardist and music director, leads with sensitivity and style, supported by Bill Pashby on cello and Liam Robinson on bassoon. Their playing adds texture, wit, and emotional color throughout the evening, but always in service to the storytelling. In a room of this size, that balance matters enormously; and this trio gets it exactly right.

The same can be said of costume designer Stacey Herrison, whose work is nothing short of ingenious. For eight actors to portray so many roles, the costume changes must be not only swift but clear, expressive, and character-defining. Herrison solves that challenge brilliantly. The costumes help make the production's constant reinvention possible, allowing the cast to shift identities again and again with speed and clarity, while preserving the charm and visual pleasure of the world being created.

Burning Coal Theatre Company's April 9-26 production of Lerner and Loewe's My Fair Lady stars (from left) Derek Robinson as
Professor Henry Higgins, Alec Donaldson as Colonel Pickering, and Natalie Reder as Eliza Doolittle (photo by Kevin Lord)

That sense of reinvention is really the point. This My Fair Lady is not built around lavish illusion in the traditional sense. It is built around transformation. The ever-changing sets, characters, and costumes create a kind of living kaleidoscope. Patterns keep shifting. Colors keep rearranging themselves. A face seen one way in one scene reappears transformed in the next. The dancing, the movement, and the design continually offer us a new perspective on a classic musical that can sometimes feel too familiar. Here, it feels discovered again.

Burning Coal's production succeeds because it understands that My Fair Lady is, at heart, a show about performance, transformation, and the fragile line between identity and presentation. By placing the production in the round and asking just eight actors to embody an entire world, director Jerome Davis and his team embrace those themes rather than simply illustrating them. The result is lively, funny, inventive, and full of heart.

Burning Coal's April 9-26 production of My Fair Lady stars Lenore Field (far right) as Mrs. Higgins (photo by Kevin Lord)

Alan Jay Lerner Frederick Loewe's MY FAIR LADY, (In Person at 7:30 p.m. Thursday-Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday, April 10-12, 16-19, and 23-26), based on Pygmalion, a 1913 play by George Bernard Shaw; directed locally by Jerome Davis and choreographed by Flora Bare, with music direction by Christian L. Stahr; and starring Natalie Reder as Eliza Doolittle, Derek Robinson as Professor Henry Higgins, Alec Donaldson as Colonel Hugh Pickering, Simon Kaplan as Alfred P. Doolittle, Lenore Field as Mrs. Higgins, Byron Jennings II as Freddy Eynsford-Hill, Roné Roux Sargent as Mrs. Pearce, and Adalynn Eller as Mrs. Eynsford-Hill, (Burning Coal Theatre Company in the Murphey School Auditorium in Raleigh). STUDY GUIDE: https://www.canva.com/design/DAGqoKGHZAY/jccHN7qCMzbZcN1_B-RKmQ/view. PRESENTER: https://burningcoal.org/, https://www.linkedin.com/company/burning-coal-theatre-co/, https://www.facebook.com/burningcoaltheatrecompany, https://www.instagram.com/burningcoaltc/, https://www.tiktok.com/@burningcoaltc, https://x.com/burningcoaltc, and https://www.youtube.com/@BurningCoaltc. PODCASTS: https://burningcoal.podbean.com/. 2025-26 MAINSTAGE SEASON: https://burningcoal.org/season-29/. VENUE: https://burningcoal.org/plan-your-visit/ and https://burningcoal.org/history-of-the-murphey-school/. DIRECTIONS/PARKING: https://burningcoal.org/plan-your-visit/. ACCESSIBILITY: https://burningcoal.org/accessibility/. MY FAIR LADY (1956 Broadway and 1958 West End musical comedy): https://www.mtishows.com/my-fair-lady, https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-show/my-fair-lady-6369, https://www.ovrtur.com/show/120395, https://www.britannica.com/topic/My-Fair-Lady-musical-by-Lerner-and-Loewe, and https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/My_Fair_Lady. THE SCRIPT (excerpts): https://books.google.com/books. STUDY GUIDE (Utah Shakespeare Festival): https://www.bard.org/study-guides/my-fair-lady-study-guide/. ALAN JAY LERNER (New York City-born playwright and lyricist, 1918-86): https://www.mtishows.com/people/alan-jay-lerner https://www.songhall.org/profiles/alan-jay-lerner, https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-cast-staff/alan-jay-lerner-3945, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0503585/, https://www.britannica.com/biography/Alan-Jay-Lerner, and https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alan_Jay_Lerner. FREDERICK LOEWE (Berlin, Germany-born composer, Friedrich "Fritz" Löwe, 1901-88): https://www.frederickloewe.org/, https://www.mtishows.com/user/740477, https://www.songhall.org/profiles/frederick-loewe, https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-cast-staff/frederick-loewe-5688, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0517350/, https://www.britannica.com/biography/Frederick-Loewe, and https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frederick_Loewe. TICKETS: $30 ($20 students, educators, and active-duty miliary personnel and $25 seniors 65+), except $5 students 18 and under, plus taxes and fees. (NOTE: Some performances are SOLD OUT. Call 919-834-4001 to join the Wait List.) Click here to buy tickets. INFORMATION: 919-834-4001 or info@burningcoal.org. PLEASE DONATE TO: Burning Coal Theatre Company.

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