Cendrillon (Cinderella)

Synopsis

For the first time ever, The Royal Opera presents the story of Cinderella as told in Massenet's opera Cendrillon.

The production new to the Royal Opera House is by Laurent Pelly, whose previous work here has included the spectacularly successful La Fille du regiment, a heart-warming L'elisir d'amore and last Season's stylish new Manon. Pelly brings his characteristic lightness of touch, wit and elegance to Massenet's delightfully tuneful score against sets and costumes of fairytale charm.

Joyce DiDonato takes the title role, with Alice Coote - just like the Principal Boy familiar from British pantomime - as her Prince charming. And of course there has to be a fairy godmother, played by Eglise Gutierrez, in this version of a tale that gained particular popularity from the published fairytales of Frenchman Charles Perrault.

Musical highlights include the fairy godmother's airy coloratura, the orchestral dances of the ball, the March of the Princesses, and of course rapturous duets between the Prince and Cendrillon. French music specialist Bertrand de Billy is the conductor for an opera of radiance and charm to finish the 2010/11 Season on a note of pure pleasure.

SUNG IN FRENCH WITH ENGLISH SURTITLES

Our Review:

6 July 2011

Midsummer may not seem the most obvious season for an outing to Cinderella but the Royal Opera has chosen Massenet’s version of the tale, here receiving its first ever performances in the house, as its final new production before the Summer break.

First seen in Santa Fe five years ago, it’s certainly not short of star performances.  Eglise Guttiérez is La Fée (Fairy Godmother) and Ewa Podleś, in her first appearance at Covent Garden in two decades, is a waddling and fat-arsed stepmother Madame de la Haltière (fingers crossed that it’s mostly padding or I’m in big trouble). 

Both shake the rafters, but it's the two world class mezzos at the centre of the story who shine the brightest.  Joyce DiDonato as Lucette (or Cendrillon) and especially Alice Coote as Prince Charming are on tip top form.

Jean-Philippe Lafont is a hefty Pandolfe, skating over the trickier aspects of Cendrillo...

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Latest User Review

Trevor Collins - 24 July 2011:

Loved every second of it! The music is gorgeous (but you need to do your homework first with the only studio recording which has a tenor prince i.e.Gedda)-so much detail in the orchestration. The production was superb, witty, handsome to look at as Pelly usually is. The cast couldn`t be better, and at last I got to see Podles in a stage production , and she was clearly having a ball! Didonato and Coote managed to make something very touching about their characters and relationship, especially in their long duet which had real dramatic heft. A feast for mezzo lovers and not a divo tenor in sight! Gutierrez was far better cast as the fairy than Linda di Chamounix. ...

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