Cinderella

Cinderella is a popular fairy tale; embodying a classic folk tale myth-element of unjust oppression/triumphant reward, which received literally hundreds of tellings before modern times. The earliest version of the story originated in China around AD 860. It appeared in The Miscellaneous Record of Yu Yang by Tuan Ch'ing-Shih, a book which dates from the Tang dynasty. The best-known version was written by the French author, Charles Perrault in 1697, based on a common folk tale earlier recorded by Giambattista Basile as La Gatta Cennerentola in 1634, but the animated film from Walt Disney Productions, (see Cinderella (1950 movie)) has become the standard contemporary version.

Vehicles

The story of "Cinderella" has formed the basis of many works:

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Opera

• La Cenerentola by Gioacchino Rossini
• Cendrillon by Jules Massenet
• La Cenicienta by Jorge Peña Hen

Ballet

• Aschenbroedel by Johann Strauss II
• Cinderella (music by Sergei Prokofiev)

Pantomime

The subject of Cinderella is very common for British and Australian pantomimes. In the pantomime form Cinderella's father (Baron Hardup) is under the thumb of the stepmother. There are added characters such as Buttons (Baron Hardup's servant, and Cinderella's friend) and Dandini (the Prince's right-hand man, the character and even his name coming from Rossini's opera). The fairy Godmother must magically create a coach (from a pumpkin), footmen (from mice) and a beautiful dress for Cinderella in order for her to go to the ball. Her traditional line "Cinderella, you shall go to the ball!" has passed into common usage from gay culture where the meme of the "glamorous transformation" is a source of fascination and humor.

Related Topics:
Pantomime - Buttons - Dandini - Rossini's - Gay culture - Meme

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Musical Comedy

• Cinderella by Rodgers and Hammerstein, which was produced for television three times:
• Cinderella (1957) featuring Julie Andrews, Jon Cypher, Kaye Ballard, Alice Ghostley and Edith Adams.
• Cinderella (1965) featuring Lesley Ann Warren, Stuart Damon, Ginger Rogers, Walter Pidgeon, and Celeste Holm
• Cinderella (1997) featuring Brandy, Paolo Montalban, Whitney Houston, Whoopi Goldberg, Victor Garber, Bernadette Peters, and Jason Alexander.
• Mister Cinders, which was filmed in 1934
• Into the Woods by Stephen Sondheim (Cinderella is only a small part of this plot).

Film

• Cinderella, the 1899 first ever film version produced in France by Georges Méliès.
• Cinderella, 1911 silent film, starring Florence La Badie.
• Cinderella, an animated Laugh-O-Gram produced by Walt Disney, first released on December 6, 1922. This film was about 7 minutes long.
• Cinderella (Зо́лушка), Russian musical film of 1947, 84 min, by Lenfilm studios.
• The Slipper and the Rose, a 1976 British musical film starring Gemma Craven and Richard Chamberlain.
• Cinderella, an animated feature released on February 15, 1950, now considered one of Disney's "classics". A direct-to-video sequel, Cinderella II: Dreams Come True, was released in 2002. A Cinderella III is set to be released in 2006.
• The Glass Slipper, 1955, with Leslie Caron and Michael Wilding.
• Cinderfella, 1960, notorious because the main character is a man, played by Jerry Lewis.
• Cindy, made for television, 1978
• Ever After, 1998, starring Drew Barrymore.
• Cinderella, a 2000 British production set in mid-20th century and starring Kathleen Turner.
• A Cinderella Story, released July 16, 2004, is a modernization of the classic fairy tale featuring Hilary Duff and Chad Michael Murry.
• Cinderelmo, a Cinderella story featuring Sesame Street's Elmo and Keri Russell.
• Tri orísky pro Popelku (Three Nuts for Cinderella), Czech movie 1973
• Ella Enchanted, starring Minnie Driver and Anne Hathaway (2004)

Books

• Witches Abroad by Terry Pratchett
• Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine
• Just Ella by Margaret Peterson Haddix
• The Glass Slipper by Eleanor Farjeon
• Phoenix and Ashes by Mercedes Lackey