A Review of Rodgers + Hammerstein's Cinderella

Photo © Carol Rosegg

This week, I was invited to attend opening night of Rodgers + Hammerstein's Cinderella, a Tony-Award winning musical, by the Broadway in Cincinnati team. It has been years since I've seen Disney's Cinderella, so I was looking forward to this production and I have to say the costuming, set design and humorous script did not disappoint.

Each set change was seamless. We went from into the woods, to the town, to Cinderella's home and to the castle without evening knowing it. The physical features of the set quickly changed all while your attention was set on the cast of characters. Each setting changed in a blink of an eye and truly followed suit of the perfect fairy tale fantasy.

Speaking of transitions, Cinderella's dress change for the prince's ball was marvelous. It literally happened before your eyes and left you wondering how something so magical could happen right there on stage.

The choreography was brilliant. Like I mentioned above, the choreography of the dress change, plus the dancing choreography, was so visual. Coming from a seasoned competitive cheerleading judge, I was quite pleased to see strong use of level change, foot work and dynamic formations in the group numbers.

I was surprised to discover the plot differed from the original Disney film. There were definitely a few twists that left the audience guessing. On top of the plot surprises, the script was quite humorous. It was interesting to see how modern day references were incorporated into the script. They even drive home an important lesson that remains valuable across all centuries, all fairy tales and all backgrounds - kindness.

Overall, this production was so well orchestrated. For a few hours, you are transported into an enchanted land full of romance.

Cinderella is playing at the Aronoff until Sunday, January 18. You can find a list of shows here.

A special thanks to Broadway in Cincinnati for inviting me to join them on opening night!