‘My Fair Lady’: Loverly revival of classic musical opens in SF

Matching the wit and insightful social commentary of George Bernard Shaw’s “Pygmalion” with the brilliant songs and lyrics of Alan Jay Lerner and music by Frederick Loewe, the 1956 show “My Fair Lady” was rightfully crowned one of the best musicals of all time.

The show won six Tony Awards, including best musical, and remains one of Broadway’s longest-running shows, with 2,717 performances.

But even a classic needs a new coat of paint every now and then. Enter Bartlett Sher and the Lincoln Center Theater, whose 2018 revival was a Broadway smash, garnering 10 Tony Award nominations and winning five Outer Critics Circle Awards.

The show updates the story — about the relationship between a poor flower seller and a pompous linguistics professor — a tad to approach contemporary sensibilities. But of course those glorious tunes — “I Could Have Danced All Night,” “Loverly,” “Get Me to the Church on Time,” “On the Street Where You Live” — are still there.

The production is on a North American tour which lands at San Francisco’s Orpheum Theatre next week. The tour stars Laird Mackintosh (“Phantom of the Opera”) as Prof. Henry Higgins and Shereen Ahmed as Eliza Doolittle, who was discovered during an open call audition for the role.

Details: Opens Nov. 2 and plays through Nov. 28; Orpheum Theatre, 1192 Market St., San Francisco; proof of vaccination and masks required; $56-$226 (subject to change); www.broadwaysf.com.