London is to see the first production of the scandalous play Gigi in more than half a century.
And producer Mark Giesser has pledge to retain the grit of the story of a teenage girl groomed to be a courtesan. It was written by French author Colette as a novella in 1944 before being adapted for the stage by Anita Loos.
The then-unknown Audrey Hepburn was picked by Colette for the title role on Broadway in 1951. Leslie Caron starred in the British version and then in the 1958 film musical. Giesser said more people knew the film and its songs such as Thank Heaven For Little Girls — but added it had been sanitised to get past censors.
He thought the play’s impact would be different today, given the headline news on adolescent girls being groomed for sex in scandals from Oxford to Rotherham: “The play is still a beautiful and charming story but it does have more of an underlying edge to it.”
Latest theatre reviews
In the story, Gigi is a 16-year-old girl in a family of high-class prostitutes of modest means living in Paris in 1900. When she is seen to enjoy card games with the much older Gaston, a wealthy playboy, her mother and grandmother are determined to turn the relationship to their advantage. “It is about the survival strategy of three generations of women,” the producer said.
Gigi, which is yet to be cast, will run at the Tabard Theatre in west London from October 28 to November 21.
Follow Going Out on Facebook and on Twitter @ESgoingout
