“Stepping into the role for the tour part of my journey began the third time of figuring out my place in it and what I wanted to bring to the role,” Ahmed said.
When the tour was put on pause during the pandemic, Ahmed had plenty of time to figure out her place as Eliza, the street-smart waif who turns to Professor Henry Higgins to help make her into a proper lady.
The cast and crew restarted the show in September. Ahmed said the show is better for the time off.
“We’ve all changed; we’ve all been through the trauma of 2020 and 2021 and trying to figure out what we can bring to audiences now,” she explained. “Our audiences have changed, as well. It’s new and it’s different, and I think it’s pertinent to what’s happening in the world now.”
“My Fair Lady” is filled with iconic tunes, including the signature “I Could Have Danced All Night,” “Wouldn’t It Be Loverly,” “I’ve Grown Accustomed to Her Face” and the enunciation ditty “Rain in Spain,” which Ahmed confessed was her favorite moment in the play.
“That’s the moment I feel the audience is really cheering for Eliza and cheering for her new superpower, her voice,” she said. “That whole movement from ‘Rain in Spain’ and ‘Dance All Night’ is so stunning and so beautiful, and I get to go on this journey of experiencing my new voice and the power of that.”