THE cast and crew of the Bath Operatic and Dramatic Society have pulled out all the stops as they take My Fair Lady to Theatre Royal Bath this week.

Madeleine Woolgar is a quick and comical Eliza Doolittle and the chemistry between her and Henry Higgins, played by Steve Huggins, and Colonel Pickering, played by Huw Morgan, is great fun to watch.

A stand-out performance from Dave Key-Pugh as Alfred Doolittle leads the ensemble in high-energy dance routines in both acts.

It is easy to forget the number of iconic songs that have come out of the show, with ballads such as On The Street Where You Live and I Could Have Danced All Night, followed swiftly by dance numbers Get Me To The Church On Time and With A Little Bit of Luck.

What might be surprising to lovers of the hit musical in which Audrey Hepburn plays leading lady Eliza Doolittle, is that the story was never intended to become a musical. Playwright George Bernard Shaw first penned Pygmalion, the play that introduced the characters of Eliza Doolittle and Professor Higgins to the the stage, in 1912. The play was adapted as a musical by Alan Jay Lerner and Frederick Loewe for Broadway in 1956 and it came to the West End in 1958.

In the adaptation for the Theatre Royal performance, every individual costume has been crafted for the cast as head of wardrobe Carol Norton recreated the look of East End flower sellers and exclusive race goers at Ascot. At the end of the show the huge cast filled the stage as they soaked in the applause, highlighting the truly ensemble nature of the show.

I went to bed humming the songs and dreaming of wearing Miss Doolittle’s outfits.

The show runs until February 24, with tickets from £15. Visit www.theatreroyal.org.uk/event/my-fair-lady/ for more information.