Cinderella

Prologue

            Our story begins with young Ella playing outside in the meadow with her mother and father. Their happiness seemed to be destined forever, until Ella’s mother suddenly falls fatally ill. Ella is heartbroken over the loss of her beloved mother and weeps over her grave. 

            Over time, Ella’s father remarries, but, unfortunately, his new wife turns out to be a mean and jealous woman and forces Ella to take care of the house like a maid, sweeping, scrubbing, and cooking.

Act I

            Years later, Ella is still the slave of the household and is now mockingly called a new name by her stepsisters, Cinderella, because of all the soot that covers her. The days are endless for Cinderella; mopping, cleaning, and serving her stepmother and stepsisters but she remains kind and compassionate, even making friends with the mice that live in the house. One day, an invitation from the palace comes to the household that there will be a grand ball and the Prince will choose a wife from one of the maidens of the land. The stepsisters are very excited; dancing around and imagining the fun they will have at the grand party. Cinderella is excited too, but is laughed at when the stepsisters and stepmother make her stay home. Alone, Cinderella recalls her wonderful days with her parents and she daydreams of dancing at the ball.

            An old beggar woman appears, looking for food and clothes to keep warm. Cinderella, having every reason to sulk in her grief and frustration, kindly offers her food and sacrificially gives her mother’s beloved shoes. The old woman, thankful for the generosity, casts a gentle look at the kind Cinderella and then leaves. 

            Abruptly, the house is filled with hairstylists and dressmakers to help prepare for the ball and make princesses out of the stepsisters, to no avail. A dance instructor comes in and tries to teach the sisters coordination and grace to which there is no hope. No one seems to notice that Cinderella is in the background and the whole house becomes empty, except for Cinderella’s friends, the mice, who keep her company and help her clean. 

Suddenly the beggar woman appears again and magically reveals herself as Cinderella’s Fairy Godmother. Cinderella is then taken far away from her gloomy, everyday existence to an enchanted realm of beauty and fantasy among the stars where the fairies of Spring, Summer, Autumn, and Winter come and each offer her their season’s gift. The Fairy Godmother tells Cinderella that as a reward for her kindness she shall go to the ball and will magically receive the most beautiful dress. However, the Fairy Godmother has a warning, she must leave the ball before the clock strikes midnight, when all the magic will fade away and Cinderella will once again return to her normal self as the maid of the house.

Act II

At the palace, the guests arrive as the court jester entertains the crowd who are  all anxiously awaiting for the prince. A fanfare announces the prince’s arrival, but then, as if time suddenly held still, Cinderella arrives in her magical coach. She is so beautiful that everyone thinks that she is a princess. Her beauty charms the prince and though the ball continues with dancing, he becomes caught up with her loveliness. It is not long before Cinderella forgets the Fairy Godmother’s warning.

            Suddenly the clock strikes midnight and Cinderella rushes from the palace. In the escape, she loses one of her slippers, but the prince was not far behind. In his chase after the beautiful princess Cinderella, he finds the slipper and vows to find the one he now loves.

Act III

            The morning after the ball, the prince and his entourage, search every part of the kingdom for the one who fits into the lost slipper. He is determined that the lovely princess from the ball will be found – while many others are determined to prove that they are the princess he is looking for. 

Meanwhile, Cinderella awakes and finds herself once again at the kitchen fireplace covered in soot as if the night before never happened. She wonders if she had dreamed it all and is very confused. But then she finds a slipper in her apron and she knows without a doubt that she was really at the ball and danced with the prince!

After searching the kingdom, the prince comes to Cinderella’s house. The stepsisters and even the stepmother try to make the beautiful shoe fit. Finally, it is Cinderella’s turn to try the shoe on. It fits! They are reunited and their love is rekindled. Cinderella experiences magic once more, but this time with her beloved prince who redeems her out of the clutches of her stepmother’s home.

And they live happily ever after in true love.