Welcome to YourClassical Storytime! Today's story is all about a young woman who has many names all around the world, but the one you probably know best is Cinderella.
Did you know the Cinderella story was written more than 300 years ago by a Frenchman named Charles Perrault? And Cinderella wasn't the only famous story he gave us. Among his other characters are Little Red Riding Hood, Puss in Boots and another famous princess, Sleeping Beauty.
When a story is a good one, lots of people want to tell the tale. You probably know of more than one version of Cinderella's story. You might have one or two stories in a book. Walt Disney made a famous animated version. Parents and grandparents probably remember Cinderella made for TV way back in the 1960s, when a famous Broadway musical team, Rodgers and Hammerstein, made her sing and dance.
Classical music writers also loved Cinderella. More than 200 years ago, Italian composer Giacchino Rossini wrote a very funny opera called La Cenerentola. "Cenerentola" means "Cinderella" in Italian. But you won't meet all the usual characters in Rossini's opera. He's taken some out and added new ones.
Instead of the Fairy Godmother, there's Alidoro, teacher and friend to the Prince. He helps Cinderella get to the ball. And rather than a wicked stepmother, there's her nasty stepfather, Don Magnifico, who insists he had a dream that his daughters, Clorinde and Tisby, will become royalty. Cinderella's real name is revealed as Angelina. And there's no glass slipper! Instead, there's a pair of matching diamond bracelets.
And so our story begins.
Click the player above or YouTube video below to listen, or download the story to your own device.
(See more of Carlson's illustrations in the gallery.)
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YouTube
Playlist
Giacchino Rossini: La Cenerentola (instrumental excerpts)
Southwest German Radio Symphony Orchestra
Alberto Zedda, conductor
Benjamin Britten (based on Rossini): Matinees Musicales: II. Nocturne
Helsingborg Symphony Orchestra
Okko Kamu, conductor
Courtesy of Naxos of America, Inc.
Credits
Narrator: Lynne Warfel
Tisbe: Elena See
Clorinda: Lynne Warfel
Cinderella: Julie Amacher
Don Magnifico: Steve Seel
Prince Ramiro: Scott Blankenship
Alidoro: Josh Holt
Dandini: Josh Holt
Adapted and directed by: Lynne Warfel
Producer: Valerie Kahler
Illustrations: Nancy Carlson
Digital producer: James Napoli
Senior digital producer: Randy Salas
Technical directors: Michael Osborne, Veronica Rodriguez, Evan Clark
Program director: Julie Amacher
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About YourClassical Storytime
YourClassical Storytime is supported by Minnesota Neuropsychology.
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