Lincoln Center Theater announces My Fair Lady casting

Two-time Emmy-nominated star of "Six Feet Under" Lauren Ambrose will star as Eliza Doolittle.

Lincoln Center Theater has announced initial casting for the forthcoming Broadway revival of Lerner & Loewe's classic musical My Fair Lady, directed by Tony winner Bartlett Sher, which begins previews at the Vivian Beaumont Theater on March 15, 2018, before an official opening on April 19.

Two-time Emmy Award nominee Lauren Ambrose will take on the role of Eliza Doolittle, whilst Harry Hadden-Paton will make his NY stage debut as Henry Higgins, with two-time Tony winner Norbert Leo Butz as Alfred P. Doolittle, and Tony winner Diana Rigg as Mrs. Higgins. Additional casting will be announced at a later date.

My Fair Lady features book and lyrics by Alan Jay Lerner and music by Frederick Loewe.

Synopsis: "Adapted from George Bernard Shaw's play and Gabriel Pascal's motion picture Pygmalion, the musical tells the story of a cockney flower girl named Eliza Doolittle, who attempts to pass as a lady after taking speech lessons from phoneticist professor Henry Higgins."

This will mark the first Broadway revival in 25 years. The musical originally premiered in 1956, directed by Moss Hart and starring Julie Andrews and Rex Harrison. The musical picked up a total of six Tony Awards in 1957, including "Best Musical." Three short-lived Broadway revivals were staged in 1976, 1981 and 1993.

The score of My Fair Lady features such musical theatre classics as "I Could Have Danced All Night," "Get Me to the Church on Time," "Wouldn't It Be Loverly," "The Rain in Spain," "I've Grown Accustomed to Her Face," and "On the Street Where You Live."

The creative team behind My Fair Lady features music direction by Ted Sperling, choreography by Christopher Gattelli, scenic design by Michael Yeargan, costume design by Catherine Zuber, lighting design by Donald Holder, and sound design by Marc Salzberg.

My Fair Lady is produced by Lincoln Center Theater in association with Nederlander Presentations Inc.

Lauren Ambrose is perhaps best known for her TV role as Claire Fisher on "Six Feet Under", which earned her two Emmy nominations (in 2002 and 2003). She has previously appeared on Broadway in 'Exit the King' in 2009 and in 'Awake and Sing!' in 2006.

Harry Hadden-Paton is perhaps best known for his TV roles as Bertie Pelham in "Downton Abbey" and as Martin Charteris in "The Crown". His UK theatre credits include 'The Importance of Being Earnest', 'Flare Path', 'The Pride', 'She Stoops to Conquer', 'Posh', 'The Changeling', and 'The Prince of Homburg'.

Norbert Leo Butz won Tony Awards for his performances in 'Dirty Rotten Scoundrels' in 2005 and 'Catch Me If You Can' in 2011. He also earned a Tony nomination in 2002 for 'Thou Shalt Not'. Other Broadway credits include 'Big Fish', 'Dead Accounts', 'Enron', 'Speed-the-Plow,' 'Is He Dead?', 'Rent', and originating the role of Fiyero in 'Wicked'.

Diana Rigg won a Tony Award in 1994 for her performance in the title role of 'Medea'. She also earned Tony nominations for 'The Misanthrope' in 1975 and for her Broadway debut in 'Abelard and Heloise' in 1971. On screen, she has earned three Emmy Award nominations for her TV role as Lady Olenna Tyrell on "Game of Thrones", won an Emmy for "Rebecca" in 1997, and received Emmy nominations for "Victoria & Albert", "In This House of Brede", and "The Avengers".