Hello, Fairy Tale Characters!
I again am sorry about being late. However, please do realize that I have a life. :) Anyways, I'm going to set aside some time soon to do a ton of blog posts.
Today, I am talking about a production of Cinderella I saw recently. The play was brilliant, in so many ways.
First of all, the play was done in a particular style that incorporates modern references into the fairy tale.
I'm going to explain kind of how the play went, and then tell you some parts I really liked.
The opening scene is at a Victorian (?) Christmas party, where a grandfather is telling his granddaughter the story of Cinderella. Throughout the play, there are scenes with the carolers, the people at the party. They sing, dance, play games, and have contests. At one point, there is a tap-dancing contest between the carolers, which was wonderful to watch.
The actual Cinderella part was magnificent.
First of all, the stepsisters were played by men. This was supposed to be obvious, and funny. It was very hilarious. Second of all, the stepmother and stepsisters made many modern-day references, like references to the Vikings, Dunn Brothers, and Arby's. At one point, the stepmother started quoting
A Christmas Carol, and her daughters had to tell her that was the wrong theatre. Also, the characters sang modern-day songs, like "Shut Up and Dance with Me." The prince sang modern-day love songs, as well.
They also made fun of and threw things at the pit orchestra. The pit was, of course, in a. . . hole? in the middle of the stage. The conductor was Canadian, so they made fun of him for that.
As well as all this, there was audience participation. The audience was asked questions, and had to cheer for Dorcas or Pearl (the stepsisters) at one point. . .etc.
At another point, a life-sized cow fell from the sky. . .
And I haven't even mentioned Bill yet. I am using the name "Bill" for privacy of the actual person as well as other reasons. Near the beginning of the play, the stepsisters went up to a random guy in the audience and asked his name. They then asked him if he was single, and proceeded to pretend they were in love with him the entire show. They put a camera facing him, and randomly throughout the play he appeared on the screens to each side of the stage. Once, he was on a kiss-cam, and the stepsisters kissed him, and another time, when Cinderella was locked in the closet and couldn't do her chores, they threw their laundry at him.
On the other hand, the sets were breathtaking. There was a set of the Stepmother's house, the enchanted garden, and the ballroom. The sets were, as someone we went with described it, "The closest I've come to seeing magic in real life."
The house set was actually. . . well, a house. They did not use the same main set and just change major props like they did if you saw the Beauty and the Beast play at the Chanhassen (although that was amazing, too). The sets
actually changed. Cinderella's mice and bird friends were real, moving, speaking, creatures, but they were still a normal size. There was a fireplace with soup over it, many cupboards and a closet that opened.
The garden was the most magical set. The air was filled with fog over a frozen lake, while enchanted plants grew. In the background, reindeer actually grazed, wandering around in the trees. The fairy godmother enchanted the mice, who became mice footmen, and horses appeared. (These were played by people.) Then, the fairy godmother enchanted the pumpkin. It flew up, up, up, and out of sight. Then, a majestic carriage floated down, with intricate designs lacing every aspect of it.
The ballroom had a spiral staircase and a balcony, which people actually walked on. It had magnificent doors, and the dances performed were amazing.
I know it seems crazy that they could put all this in one play and not have it turn into a mess, but that's exactly what they did.
Spruce Nogard
Attributions:
Critical lenses are lenses literature can be viewed through. Lenses are kind of like putting on a pair of glasses, for example, a green-tinted pair of glasses would make everything look green, a pink pair of glasses would make everything look pink, and so on. Postmodernism is actually also a critical lens. Remember, also like a pair of glasses, just because we are analyzing a piece of literature through this lens does not mean that that is the main message of the book, or even that that is the correct (if there is a correct) interpretation of the book. Just like wearing green tinted glasses doesn't make everything actually green, it just makes everything look green, like Dorothy finds out. :)
Another example of a woman saving a man is also in fairy tales. In many fairy tales, the woman has to somehow free her beloved. The most commonly known fairy tale of this is the "Frog Prince."
