''Cinderella'' is an

opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a librett ...

by Alma Deutscher. The

libretto A libretto (Italian for "booklet") is the text used in, or intended for, an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata or Musical theatre, musical. The term ''libretto'' is also sometimes used to refer to the t ...

is based on

Charles Perrault Charles Perrault ( , also , ; 12 January 1628 – 16 May 1703) was an iconic French author and member of the Académie Française. He laid the foundations for a new literary genre, the fairy tale, with his works derived from earlier folk tales ...

's fairy tale " Cinderella". The work was first performed in Vienna on 29 December 2016.

Plot

Deutscher's second opera is a full-length work based on the

fairy tale A fairy tale (alternative names include fairytale, fairy story, magic tale, or wonder tale) is a short story that belongs to the folklore genre. Such stories typically feature magic (paranormal), magic, incantation, enchantments, and mythical ...

of Cinderella, but with significant modifications of the plot, which in her version revolves around music. It is set in Deutscher's imaginary land, Transylvanian, in an opera house run by Cinderella's stepmother. The two step-sisters are talentless would-be divas. Cinderella is a talented composer, with "beautiful melodies springing into her head", but she is not allowed to perform and is slaved-worked as a copyist. Prince Theodore is a poet, who is mocked at court for his artistic leanings. In the first act, Cinderella chances upon a captivating love poem, which unbeknownst to her, was written by the Prince. She is inspired by the poem and sets it to music. Her beautiful melody is stolen by her step-sisters and performed at the singing competition during the royal ball, but with the wrong words. Finally, Cinderella herself sings her song to the prince with the right words, but unaware that he is the poet who wrote them. After Cinderella flees from the ball at midnight, the prince searches for her on the basis of a melody (rather than a glass slipper) – the haunting melody she sang as she fled. Eventually, the pair are united: "they find each other like lyrics find melody". Deutscher explained that it was important for her that Cinderella "is not just a pretty girl who cleans the floor and keeps quiet, she's clever and talented", and she wins the prince because of her talent as a composer.

Releases and updates

A chamber version of the opera was premiered in Israel in 2015, when Deutscher was 10. She finished writing the

overture Overture (from French ''ouverture'', "opening") in music was originally the instrumental introduction to a ballet, opera, or oratorio in the 17th century. During the early Romantic era, composers such as Beethoven and Mendelssohn composed overt ...

"just a few days before the performance". In the following year, Deutscher expanded the opera and orchestrated it for an ensemble of 20 musicians, and this expanded version premiered in Vienna in 2016 (in German), with conductor

Zubin Mehta Zubin Mehta (born 29 April 1936) is an Indian conductor of Western classical music. He is music director emeritus of the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra (IPO) and conductor emeritus of the Los Angeles Philharmonic. Mehta's father was the foun ...

as patron of the production. Deutscher performed the solo violin part in the opera as well as the solo piano. The opera was received with jubilation by the public, and reports about it appeared in newspapers all over the world, even on the front page of the

China Daily ''China Daily'' () is an English-language daily newspaper owned by the Central Propaganda Department of the Chinese Communist Party. Overview ''China Daily'' has the widest print circulation of any English-language newspaper in China. T ...

newspaper. Numerous Viennese critics expressed their astonishment at the accomplishment of Deutscher's orchestral writing, and above all at the beauty of her melodies.

Adaptions

A further elaborated version of the opera received its U.S. premiered in December 2017, in a production of

Opera San José Opera San José is an American opera company founded in 1984 by Irene Dalis (1925-2014) based in San Jose, California. History Opera San José was founded in 1984 by mezzo-soprano singer Irene Dalis (1925-2014), who directed the company for 30 ...

and the

Packard Humanities Institute The Packard Humanities Institute (PHI) is a non-profit foundation, established in 1987, and located in Los Altos, California, which funds projects in a wide range of conservation concerns in the fields of archaeology, music, film preservation, an ...

, conducted by Dame Jane Glover. As in Vienna, Deutscher performed the violin and piano solo parts herself, and she also performed an organ voluntary at the beginning of the royal wedding scene. The five original performances sold out and further performances were added. '' The New Criterion'' called it an "opera of astounding wit, craft, and musical beauty... The sheer amount of orchestral and vocal invention is stunning", and predicted that ''Cinderella'' would find its way to Broadway. The magazine ''Opera Today'' described it as "a young talent's sensational burst to prominence... a once-in-a-lifetime opera-going event that had audiences standing and cheering." The San Jose production was released on DVD by Sony Classical Records in 2018. In 2018, the Vienna State Opera staged an adaptation for children, which ran for two sold-out seasons, and was released on DVD on the State Opera's own label. In 2019 Deutscher further revised the opera for a new production at the

Salzburg State Theatre Salzburg (, ; literally "Salt-Castle"; bar, Soizbuag, label=Austro-Bavarian) is the fourth-largest city in Austria. In 2020, it had a population of 156,872. The town is on the site of the Roman settlement of ''Iuvavum''. Salzburg was founded ...

which premiered in the season 2019/20 and was revived in 2020/21. In October and November 2022 there were 4 performances of Cinderella on the main stage of the

National Opera House The National Opera House, formerly the Wexford Opera House, is a theatre in Wexford, Ireland. It was officially opened on 5 September 2008 in a ceremony with An Taoiseach Brian Cowen, followed by a live broadcast of RTÉ's '' The Late Late S ...

Wexford Wexford () is the county town of County Wexford, Ireland. Wexford lies on the south side of Wexford Harbour, the estuary of the River Slaney near the southeastern corner of the island of Ireland. The town is linked to Dublin by the M11/N11 N ...

, Ireland as part of the Wexford Festival Opera 2022 season. Alma was present at the first performance, with an audience mainly of children, leaving soon afterwards to travel to San Jose. A revival of the 2017 Opera San Jose production has been announced for November 2022, with Deutscher on the podium as musical director.

References

{{Authority control 2016 operas English-language operas German-language operas Hebrew-language operas Operas based on fairy tales Works based on Cinderella Operas based on works by Charles Perrault Operas