REVIEW - Pygmalion, Caxton Theatre, 19th - 26th July 2025 - ****1/2

Arguably George Bernard Shaw’s seminal play Pygmalion has become somewhat eclipsed by the evergreen success of Lerner and Leow’s stage musical, My Fair Lady, on which Shaw’s text is based. So, this really is the “unsung hero”, as Caxton Players’ poster design informs us with the no-nonsense tagline “My Fair Lady without music”.

Poster design for 'Pygmalion' (c) Caxton Theatre

It’s startling just how true that sentiment is. Shaw’s inimitable writing style, encompassing pathos, wit and moralistic standpoints, is best explored here: his ultimate depiction of the British classes, at a time of significant unrest and upheaval. Written in 1912 – the year of Emmeline Pankhurst making headlines, as well as the sinking of the Titanic and an outbreak of war in Europe looking imminent – society, particularly in Britain, was receiving quite a wake-up call, and so Pygmalion, itself based on a Greek myth about a sculptor (Pygmalion) who falls for one of his own sculptures which then comes to life, was a timely, welcome “distraction”.  

Caxton Theatre’s 2025 production is a pretty-near pristine depiction of Shaw’s world. The set, by Robert Till (with a beautifully-realised backdrop of the Thames by Jen Pearson) looks suitably ornate, with antimacassars, stencilled art deco touches, and plush armchairs. It’s the home of Professor Henry Higgins, an expert in phonetics, who brags to fellow linguistic admirer Colonel Pickering that he could take the brassy Cockney flower girl Eliza Doolittle under his wing, and transform her into a duchess merely by teaching her “’ow to talk proper”. The idea goes to Doolittle’s head, who, the next day, confronts Higgins and, with the offer of money, wishes him to see through his boast.

It's all rather reminiscent of Caxton’s 2024 runaway hit Educating Rita. Indeed, David Wrightam, here as Higgins, would make an excellent Dr. Frank Bryant. Wrightam finds the right balance between comic exasperation and arrogant ferocity. He conjures up memories of tutors and teachers, both good and bad, and has the knack of appearing both formidable and yet voraciously caring. Carefully crafted and loaded with sharp pathos, his performance is flawless.

Equally impressive is Louise Blakey as Eliza Doolittle. It would be easy to take this role, dunk it in a tin bath of “gor blimey guv’nor” and serve it up with a pot of jellied eels, yet Blakey has toned down the screaming Cockney stereotype, which makes the character’s transformation far more believable, and therefore, more palatable. This, in conjunction with Wrightam’s performance, makes the story amble along with confident precision, allowing the more delicate issues to neatly interject the comedy (both of the character’s ignorance, Eliza’s paternal abandonment, and the intrusive shadow of the faux romance, as examples). Eliza and Higgins’ relationship is carefully built, each confrontation and moment of connection landing with authenticity and weight. NB: Shaw refused to give in to the critic’s cries for a “happy ever after” conclusion to this comedy of manners. The ending, in my belief, is satisfactorily potent enough, and carried off with great elan in this production.

Elsewhere, the cast perform their roles admirably. Bruce Forster’s mild-mannered Colonel Pickering and Susan Wheatley-Solly’s baffled, rightly sceptical Mrs. Higgins bring some of the bigger out-and-out laughs of the evening, while Carl Wingate's heightened character as the rascal, morally defunct Alfred Doolittle is palpable. Broad brush strokes are applied to the Eynsford Hill family, courtesy of Lucy Tooze, Lucy Ann Jessop and James Lusty, while Jo Cox brings a certain ‘whirling Scottish dervish’ energy to the role of Mrs. Pearce, completing Shaw’s triumvirate of socioeconomic voices: Pickering as the gentlemanly, father figure, Mrs. Higgins as the ageing, level-headed, “got the t-shirt” matriarch, and Mrs. Pearce, the rather more traditional, caring, lower-class voice of reason. Director Michael Mayne’s confident steering of these three actors and their roles, in particular, makes the production successfully and pleasantly play out as high-comedy while consistently hitting the points of social commentary without ever feeling forced.

'Pygmalion' is running at the Caxton Theatre in Grimsby until Saturday 26th July, 2025, 7.30pm. Tickets can be purchased via the link below.

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