Keziah makes her professional debut as Chichester's Eliza Doolittle
It’s going to be the most remarkable professional debut as Keziah Ibe steps into the shoes of Eliza Doolittle at Chichester Festival Theatre this summer.
She doesn't even graduate until September.
Lerner & Loewe's classic is the big summer musical this year at the CFT, adapted from George Bernard Shaw’s play and Gabriel Pascal’s motion picture Pygmalion, running from July 6-September 5.
Keziah comes straight from Arts Educational Schools where she studied for a BA in musical theatre.
“I signed (to an agent) at the beginning of March, and the day I signed my agent said ‘I'm putting you in for Eliza.’ She thought it would be perfect for me, and two days later I was in the room for it. For the first round I had to do Eliza songs, one of which was Cockney and the other from when Eliza has transformed herself. They wanted to see the contrast and then at the next round they also wanted to see Eliza when she had found herself.
“I didn't really know the show at all. During the auditions I realised how many of the songs are songs that I loved but I didn't know that they were from My Fair Lady. It’s been such a pleasure learning them through the auditions.
“(At college) we were just getting ready to do our film showcases and we had just finished our third-year show. It was a long wait (after auditions). After the first week I was asking my agent ‘Have you heard anything?’ and she said no but it turns out that she had but that they were actually having to get approval from the Lerner & Loewe estate.
“I just cried when I heard. Eliza is a character that a lot of people really connect with. A lot of people really resonate with her in some way.
“I am someone who started a bit late doing this compared to a lot of other people, and I think a lot of the time I was telling myself that I couldn't do certain things or that I was far behind. Eliza is someone that a lot of people have limited in different ways but she has her dreams. She dreams to be a lady in a flower shop instead of selling flowers, and I think in terms of being a dreamer then I was also aspiring to do something big and exciting and real.
“In rehearsals we are playing a lot with the contrast in the character. At the beginning we are really pushing her street seller bravado but she is highly intelligent and I think the point is that when she is Cockney she is still highly intelligent but it's just that it gets overlooked. When she speaks properly, she seems more intelligent but she's always been intelligent and I think that's what we're trying to bring out in the part.
“And I think in our version we are making it very clear that she decides to change. She knows that there is a bet going on but she actually wants to change herself. The fact of the experiment is not the cruelty. What she finds cruel is the lack of appreciation for what she is doing. She knows that she has a lot to offer but because of her situation she is very limited. All of us have something that we dream about, a dream of better things for ourselves. As I say, she just wants to sell flowers in a shop rather than on the street. She's someone that really wants to improve.”
Keziah is loving being part of the company: “It's such a pleasure. I'm learning so much being around these people. They all give me little nuggets I can use and take on board. Every element is looked after. It is very much a conversation and very specific and very centred towards the individual and what you need. They know that you're working towards the goal. I'm being really well looked after.”