No matter how many times you’ve seen Rodgers + Hammerstein’s Cinderella on TV, on DVD, or in regional or community productions over the years, get ready to relish the hilarious new life Douglas Carter Beane’s fresh new book breathes into the 2013 Broadway revival of the 1950s live TV classic, now playing at Long Beach’s Musical Theatre West.

From its TV debut back in 1957 with a 21-year-old Julie Andrews as its star to subsequent TV revivals to a much-performed stage adaptation, Cinderella’s tale as old as time (set to the glorious songs of Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II) has kept parents and children coming back for more.

And though you’ll still be hearing the eight songs featured in all three TV versions, Beane’s Tony-nominated book, adds heart, depth, a whole bunch of new laughs, and a decidedly contemporary vibe to the Hammerstein-penned original.

This time round, Cinderella (Emily Grace Tucker) is a budding social activist with a rabble-rousing best buddy named Jean-Michel (Jalon Matthews) who’s got his heart set on Cinderella’s not-so-wicked stepsister Gabrielle (Aviva Pressman).

Stepmother Madame (Tracy Lore) and plus-size stepsister Charlotte, accent on “lotte” (Joanna Johnson), are the meanies we’ve come to love, but Cinderella’s Fairy Godmother is now town loony “Crazy” Marie (Daebreon Poiema) with a secret or two hidden under her cape.

As for Cinderella’s Prince Charming, redubbed Prince Topher (Gabriel Navarro), the handsome young bachelor is now an orphan under the tutelage of the self-serving Sebastian (Perry Ojeda), who’d rather his charge remain the frustrated slayer of dragons and giants than the socialist democrat he could become if he only met the right girl.

Not only do Beane’s revisions make this a 21-Century fairytale that adults can savor every bit as much as the tots, the musical’s new book has the kind of whoosh-past-the-kids humor that helped Disney revolutionize the animated film genre with The Little Mermaid and Beauty And The Beast.

And Cinderella à la Beane gives audiences not just one ball but two, plus a pair of equally inspired surprise twists when the clock strikes midnight.

Of course there wouldn’t be a Rodgers + Hammerstein’s Cinderella without the the glorious melodies and clever lyrics that turned the duo into overnight Broadway legends with Oklahoma! Songs don’t get any more exquisite than “In My Own Little Corner,” “Impossible,” “Ten Minutes Ago,” “A Lovely Night,” and “Do I Love You Because You’re Beautiful?”

Add to these the delightful “The Prince Is Giving A Ball” and “Stepsister’s Lament” and a few “new” songs, forgotten gems from the R+H oeuvre (like “Now Is The Time,” whose melody will be recognized by South Pacific aficionados) and you’ve got a score to rival R + H’s best, albeit with fewer songs than you might expect from a show that runs almost two and a half hours (including intermission).

Sparklingly directed by Peggy Hickey and featuring choreographer Bill Burns’ take on Hickey’s original dance moves (an exhilarating blend of ballroom and ballet), MTW’s Cinderella features one winning performance after another.

Leading lady Tucker gives the title character equal parts loveliness and spunk, and sings in a terrific pop soprano opposite the equally fine-voiced Navarro’s ever so likable Topher, and Musical Theatre West audiences who’ve not discovered Poiema’s stunningly gorgeous pipes had better enjoy them (and her radiance) before Broadway beckons as it surely must.

Ojeda’s amusingly conniving Sebastian, Matthews’ engagingly earnest Jean-Michel, and Nick Tubbs (heralding the Prince’s news with the best of them) offer topnotch comedic support.

As for Cinderella’s nearest and mostly not so dearest, the comically villainous Lore once again proves herself a SoCal musical theater treasure, Pressman gives Gabrielle both prettiness and smarts, and Johnson steals every single scene she’s in as the dim-witted, full-figured, horizontal-haired, utterly irrepressible Charlotte.

Appearing as Knights, Townspeople, and Lords and Ladies of the Court, song-and-dance ensembles don’t get any better than dance captain Richard Bulda, Michael Bullard, Rorey Chavarria, Quintan Craig, Lauren Decierdo, Erin Dubreuil, Missy Marion, Sarah Morgan, Alejandro MullerDahlberg, Noelle Roth, Callula Sawyer, and Adam Winner, the women earning comedic snaps, the men balletic cheers, and Bullard and Chavarria should have been given program credit for their standout solo dance turns as a pair of farm animals transformed into footman and driver.

Though the sets designed John Patrick for Citrus College Music Theatre Workshop are less spectacular than the Broadway designs that toured the US a half dozen years back, they do provide a storybook backdrop to the fairytale fabulous costumes Travis M. Grant designed for North Shore Music Theatre, a couple of which harbor magic tricks that must be seen to be believed.

Paul Black’s vivid lighting, Julie Ferrin’s crisp and clear sound design, and Michon Gruber’s elaborate (and occasionally wacky) wigs complete the Cinderella production design, with musical director extraordinaire Dennis Castellano conducting the show’s Broadway-caliber pit orchestra.

Kelly Marie Pate is stage manager and Lydia Runge is assistant stage manager. Steve Calzaretta is production manager. Bren Thor is company manager.

Though there was already plenty to enjoy in Rodgers + Hammerstein’s Cinderella as audiences knew and loved it for over fifty years, Douglas Carter Beane’s reimagined book made its 2013 Broadway revival something special indeed. Musical Theatre West audiences can now discover how much difference a clever, funny, witty new book can make, particularly when performed by MTW stars. I for one had a ball!

Musical Theatre West, Richard and Karen Carpenter Performing Arts Center, 6200 Atherton St., Long Beach.
www.musical.org

–Steven Stanley
December 3, 2022
Photos: Caught In The Moment Photography

Tags: Douglas Carter Beane, Los Angeles Theater Review, Musical Theatre West, Rodgers & Hammerstein