Some musicals just keep on giving. So it is with this touring production of Lerner and Loewe’s decades-old classic. Despite some shortfalls, it still charms and bedazzles. The story, adapted from George Bernard Shaw’s Pygmalion, tells the plight of Eliza, a poor cockney flower girl who is transformed into a courtly princess by the determined linguist Henry Higgins. This revival showcases jaw-droppingly beautiful costumes and lavish sets. But it soars on the angelic voice and alluring presence of Lisa O’Hare in the role of Eliza. Her singing is rapturous, and her performance near perfect. Not quite as impressive is Christopher Cazenove’s Henry Higgins, who comes off as intermittently droll and unstudied. Trevor Nunn’s stagecraft displays skillful precision as he marshals this huge cast around onstage. But there are lapses in the ensemble numbers: Sometimes the singing comes across as mechanical or strained. During “With a Little Bit of Luck,” which features a troupe of dancers clanging away with trash-can lids attached to their feet, I counted two instances where one of the dancers nearly fell. Such glitches fortunately couldn’t torpedo this thoroughly enjoyable revival.
Tuesdays-Saturdays, 8 p.m.; Saturdays, 2 p.m.; Sundays, 1 & 6:30 p.m. Starts: April 10. Continues through April 27, 2008

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