IMPORTANT NOTICE:

In light of the current situation surrounding the COVID-19 (Coronavirus) pandemic, Opera Birmingham has made the difficult decision to suspend our performances of Cinderella on March 20 and 22. In making this decision, our intent is to minimize the risk of spreading COVID-19 and to protect our patrons, artists, staff, and the community from potential exposure. Our company had assembled an absolutely stunning production for you, and we are heartbroken that we are unable to share these beautiful performances with our audiences at this time. We recognize the trust our ticket buyers place in us, and we are committed to honoring your tickets to Cinderella.  We acknowledge and thank you for your patience as we navigate our path forward.  We do hope to bring Cinderella to the stage soon, but in the interim – and while we continue planning next season – here are some options for your Cinderella ticket(s):

• Your purchase total can be transferred to a gift card to use for tickets to any future Opera Birmingham performance.

• You can convert your ticket purchase to a donation to support Opera Birmingham and the artists working to bring music back to our community.

So that we may process your request, please indicate your choice by completing this ONLINE FORM.

Opera Birmingham stands in solidarity with all those affected, in any mild or tragic way, with the outbreak of COVID-19. We hope you and your loved ones stay in good health.

For the first time ever, Opera Birmingham brings to life Massenet’s enchanting French opera, Cinderella! With soaring love duets and thrilling high notes, this magical operatic gem is one not to be missed. Join us for this classic fairytale love story, perfect for opera lovers of all ages and anyone who believes in true love and happily-ever-after!

Sung in French with projected English translations. Featuring the Opera Birmingham Chorus and Alabama Symphony Orchestra. Run time is 2.5 hours, including one intermission.

Join us for special opportunities before and after the show! One hour before each performance, a Pre-Show Chat will take place on the lower level with General Director Keith A. Wolfe-Hughes and special guest, Dr. Christy Thomas Adams, Assistant Professor of Musicology at the University of Alabama. In the lobby, 45 minutes to each performance, you will be treated to magic tricks by the Magic City Magician! There will also be special photo opportunities for audience members following each performance: On Friday, have your photo taken on stage with Cinderella’s carriage! After Sunday’s matinee, the stars of the show will be available for photos with you in the lobby!

A storybook kingdom. Pandolfe, a country gentleman, has married Madame de la Haltière, an imperious countess. She and her daughters, Noémie and Dorothée, bully Pandolfe’s daughter from his first marriage, Lucette—known as Cinderella.

ACT I

The household prepares for a ball to be given at the Court that evening. Pandolfe bemoans his lot: married to a nagging wife who ill-treats his daughter. Madame de la Haltière instructs her daughters on how to behave at the ball. She refuses to let Cinderella attend the festivities or to let her father say goodbye to her. After her family has left, Cinderella sits by the fire and dreams of the ball. Cinderella’s Fairy Godmother appears and conjures her a beautiful gown and glass slippers. She tells Cinderella that she can go to the ball but must leave before midnight, and that the glass slippers will prevent Cinderella’s family from recognizing her.

ACT II

The royal ballroom is full of guests enjoying themselves, but Prince Charming is in a melancholy mood. The King orders his son to find a wife, and several princesses dance for the Prince. An unknown beauty, Cinderella in all her finery, enters the room to general surprise. The whole court—except Madame de la Haltière and her daughters—are charmed by the stranger, and the Prince immediately falls in love with her. Left alone with Cinderella, he tells her of his feelings. Cinderella is equally taken with the Prince, but at the first stroke of midnight she hurries away, remembering the Fairy Godmother’s words.

ACT III

Cinderella has returned home, crestfallen at having had to leave the Prince behind. She remembers her frightening journey from the royal palace and how she lost one of her glass slippers as she left the ball. Madame de la Haltière and her daughters enter, abusing Pandolfe. Madame de la Haltière then describes to Cinderella the “unknown stranger” who appeared at the King’s ball, telling her that the Prince spoke contemptuously of the girl, and that the Court regarded her with disdain. When Pandolfe tells his wife to be quiet, she turns on him again. Pandolfe has finally had enough and sends Madame de la Haltière, Noémie, and Dorothée out of the room. He suggests to Cinderella that they leave town and return together to his country estate. Cinderella agrees, and Pandolfe goes to prepare for their journey. Alone, Cinderella decides that she is too sad to continue living. She bids farewell to her home and leaves, determined to go off and die in the forest.

Spirits are dancing in the forest. Prince Charming and Cinderella enter, looking for each other. They pray to the Fairy Godmother to ease their pain. Hearing each other’s voices, they reaffirm their love, and Cinderella tells the Prince her true name, Lucette. The Fairy Godmother allows the pair to see each other. They embrace and fall into an enchanted sleep.

ACT IV

Pandolfe has found Cinderella in the forest and has been caring for her at home. He tells her that she had been talking during her illness of her adventures at the ball and of Prince Charming. Cinderella begins to believe that the whole episode was a dream. Trying to be brave, she greets the spring with her father. Madame de la Haltière, Noémie, and Dorothée enter excitedly. They tell Cinderella and Pandolfe that the King has summoned maidens from all over the land in the hope that one of them is the unknown beauty whom the Prince met at the ball. Madame de la Haltière is sure that the Prince must mean one of her daughters and is determined to go to the palace. A herald announces that the Prince is insisting that each woman who appears at court must try on the glass slipper left behind by the unknown beauty, for it will only fit perfectly upon her foot. Cinderella resolves to go to the palace as well.

The Prince is desperately searching for his beloved among the young women summoned to the palace. Having not found her, he despairs, until Cinderella and the Fairy Godmother arrive. The Prince immediately recognizes Cinderella, and the pair declare their love to the court. Pandolfe and the rest of Cinderella’s family enter. Everyone rejoices and hails Cinderella as their future queen.

Synopsis courtesy of The Metropolitan Opera

Our season has been made possible, in part, by a generous contribution from UAB Health System and by grants from Alabama Power Foundation, Alabama State Council on the Arts, The Caring Foundation of Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Alabama, Hugh Kaul Foundation, and National Endowment for the Arts.