The Kaohsiung City Ballet (KCB, 高雄城市芭蕾舞團) is premiering its production of Cinderella (仙履奇緣) this weekend in Greater Kaohsiung as part of the 2011 Kaohsiung Spring Arts Festival.
Cinderella is KCB founder Chang Hsiu-ru’s (張秀如) latest foray into full-length classic ballets for her small company. Chang invited Romanian ballerina and choreographer Ioana Vasilescu, who worked with the troupe on La Sylphide in 2005, to stage this production.
The score was composed by Sergei Prokofiev for the Bolshoi Ballet during World War II, but Sir Frederick Ashton choreographed what is probably the most enduring version for the Royal Ballet in 1948, just three years after the Bolshoi’s premiere. The KCB will enjoy the rare luxury — for a ballet production in Taiwan — of dancing to live music as Yang Chih-chin (楊智欽) conducts the Kaohsiung City Symphony Orchestra (高雄市交響樂團).
Photo Courtesy of Kaohsiung City Ballet
As in the well-known fairy tale, Cinderella suffers at the hands of a wicked stepmother and two stepsisters before being helped by her fairy godmother; however, she doesn’t leave a glass slipper when she flees the palace ball and handsome prince, but a pointe shoe.
■ Kaohsiung Chihteh Hall (高雄至德堂), 67 Wufu 1st Rd, Greater Kaohsiung (高雄市五福一路67號)
■ Tonight and tomorrow at 7:30pm
■ Tickets are NT$600 to NT$1,500, available online atwww.artsticket.com.tw or at 7-Eleven ibon kiosks
■ On the Net: www.kcb.org.tw
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