2020 and 2021 has been hard for many people but right now, in my eyes, I’m in heaven. Sat back in a theatre after so long away, watching Sir David Bintley’s enchanting fairytale, Cinderella and I feel at home. I have to admit, it feels strange watching Birmingham Royal Ballet performing at Birmingham Repertory Theatre and not their usual home ground at Birmingham Hippodrome but as a large fan of both BRB and Birmingham Rep too, it fits and it works and the magic was undoubtedly still there.
This is a performance that should not be missed. With amazing ballet (Karla Doorbars Pointe Technique is astonishing, especially the section where Karla walks down the stairs en pointe), incredible scenery and captivating costumes by John Macfarlane, topped with Prokofiev’s beautiful music, played live (in a studio broadcast via TV screens at the front sides of the stage due to social distancing measures) by the Royal Ballet Sinfonia there is nothing within this production that I could fault. It is perfect.
If you have seen BRBs award winning Cinderella before, I should note that it has changed slightly as it has had to be specially adapted with a reduced score and a few staging adaptations to allow for social distancing and performer ‘bubbles’. It still manages to hit all the right notes and I’m not sure many people would even notice.
For those unaware of the story, the curtain opens to the funeral of Cinderellas Father who has died. She is left to live with her evil Step Mother (played today by Eilis Small) and her two incredibly mean Step Sisters; Skinny (Alexandra Burman) and Dumpy (Laura Day). They treat Cinderella badly and Cinderella pines for her father whose picture she keeps in a box along with a sparkling pair of silver dancing slippers that had belonged to her mother.
An invitation in the post arrives to the family. The Prince (played beautifully by Lachlan Monaghan) is having a Ball and is inviting everyone as he searches for a Princess. The evil Step Mother and Step Sisters invite a dressmaker (Haoliang Feng) and his assistants (artists of BRB), a hairdresser (Max Maslen), Wigmaker (Ryan Felix) and a dancing master (my favourite BRB dancer – Tzu-Chao Chou) to the house. Eager to be the Prince’s first choice, they will stop at nothing to ensure they are prepared for the big day.
In the cellar, Cinderella finds a poor old woman (Yvette Knight). She’s cold, seeking warmth from the fire and food for her stomach. Cinderella helps and seeing that the woman has no shoes, she hands over the dancing slippers from her mother, to keep the ladies feet warm.
The Ball commences and the Step Sisters set off for the Palace, leaving Cinderella to dream of being there. The Old lady reappears but this time she transforms into a beautiful fairy spirit of Cinderella’s mother and she promises her daughter that in time, she will find love and happiness. She dresses Cinderella in a beautiful gown, conjures up a magnificent coach and liveried servants (Andrea Zulian, Samuel Lopez Legaspi and Shahin Noori) to whisk her off to the Ball where Cinderella captures the Prince’s heart.
When the clock strikes midnight Cinderellas clothes turn to rags, she runs from the party, leaving one slipper as she escapes before the Prince sees her.
The next day the Prince sets out to find the owner of the slipper. The stepsisters try to squeeze their feet into it. The Prince looks in despair, unsure he will ever find her, when Cinderella finally finds the courage to present her foot. The slipper fits!
A truly stunning ballet with a wealth of talented ballet dancers, perfect for regular ballet fans and also for people who may never have been to the ballet before. My husband came along with my two girls this time and they all had a great time. Jemima stood up to clap and gave a standing ovation, turning to me to say “I really loved that “.
It’s a perfect family ballet. Full of humour, love and a multitude of emotions.
Running times:
Act I: 30 minutes
Interval: 30 minutes
Act II: 40 minutes
Pause: 10 minutes
Act III: 25 minutes
The performance is approximately 2 hours 45 minutes long
For tickets: Please click here
Disclaimer: We were kindly invited along to the Press Performance of Cinderella but all thoughts and views are entirely our own.
What a lovely review. So happy you and your family enjoyed the show. Its so good to be back watching live performances in the theatre.
I will pass this review onto Karla (I’m her mum) as karla isn’t on social media.
Thank you