Matthew Bourne's Cinderella

Gosh what a dark and wonderful tale this New Adventures production does tell ... not the Cinderella of panto but a far more adult, sad and moving story. Running time was over 2.5 hours, it felt like a fraction of that and I didn't want it to end.

This is a very filmic show full of great sound and stage effects but the dance and the story interpretation are far from swamped by the staging - this is a beautifully choreographed and danced interpretation. Forget the panto Cinderella, this tale has real drama and emotion in it told with a stunning sense of the truth of the tale. I thought at first that I would miss the live music, nope, the specially recorded score kept the show driving along and allowed us to concentrate on the on-stage events ... my only criticism being that so much was happening I couldn't take it all in - watch one couple of stage left and you miss a "moment" on stage right ... really, you need to see this more than once to get it all ... some of the off-line performances are so damned good its a shame to be distracted by 'the action'!

What a wonderful evening ....

How curious to have seen two WWII RAF shows in a few days (this and Flare Path), mind you, despite having been properly tailored by Gieves and Hawkes I doubt that my RAF uniform would have been up to this job, far too restricting!  I am so glad this show is touring as I have missed several other opportunities to see it, do not make my mistake, make the effort, go, see, enjoy ... this really is story telling by modern ballet at its most enthralling.