My Fair Lady to be revived in Chichester

Chichester Festival Theatre has announced a new production of My Fair Lady.

Featuring a book and lyrics by Alan Jay Lerner and music by Frederick Loewe, My Fair Lady is adapted from George Bernard Shaw’s play Pygmalion and Gabriel Pascal’s motion picture of the same name.

The musical follows Cockney flower seller Eliza Doolittle, who dreams of working in a florist’s shop but struggles to be taken seriously because of her accent. When she meets phonetics professor Henry Higgins, he makes a bet that he can transform her speech and manners to pass as a society lady.

The score includes standards such as “The Rain in Spain”, “I Could Have Danced All Night”, “With a Little Bit of Luck” and “Wouldn’t It Be Loverly”. The musical premiered on Broadway in 1956 and was later adapted into a film released in 1964.

The new production is part of the venue’s 2026 season, which opens in April. It is directed by Rachel Kavanaugh, running at the Festival Theatre from 6 July to 5 September, with a press night on 15 July.

Kavanaugh previously directed The Music Man, Shadowlands and Half a Sixpence at Chichester. The creative team also includes set and costume designer Peter McKintosh, choreographer Stephen Mear, musical supervisor Stephen Ridley, musical director Cat Beveridge, lighting designer Howard Harrison, sound designer Ian Dickinson and casting director Stuart Burt.

A dementia-friendly performance is scheduled for 29 July and a relaxed performance will take place on 1 September.

Casting is to be revealed.

See the venue’s full season announcement