Cinderella

Introduction

The paper will give background information and the context of the event, as well as detailing the event itself. In this regard, the paper will elaborate on the overall theme or message being communicated in the performance/event; and how does this performance/event relate to modern society. The discussion will give special relevance to the manner in which the play represented culture in the United States in today's modern context. In order to facilitate the elaboration and to ensure the relevance of the discussion, the paper will elaborate on my own personal reaction and what the performance/event meant to me. I will also explain how the event made me feel and my personal reaction to the basic elements of the work. I will also highlight the quality of the performance and the setting of the play. In this regard, I will explain the nature of the audience, and on the values I perceived in the work or its performance.

Discussion

Cinderella; or, The Little Glass Slipper is a folk tale embodying a myth-element of unjust oppression/triumphant reward. Thousands of variants are known throughout the world. The well-known scheme rotates around a girl dispossessed of her equitable position in the family and given the cruel nickname Cinderella by her stepmother and step-sisters. She was forced to work as a servant, Cinderella accepts the help of her attendant spirit (fairy godmother) who transforms her to attend a royal ball and attract the attention of the handsome prince. In some versions of the tale, there are three balls, though most narrations mention only one.

Unfortunately, the magic comes to an end at the first stroke of midnight. In the three-ball version, Cinderella keeps a close watch on the time the first two nights and is able to leave without difficulty. However, on the third (or only) night, she loses track of the time and must flee the castle before her disguise vanishes. In her haste, she loses a glass slipper which the prince finds. He declares that he will marry only the girl whose petite foot fits into the slipper.

Cinderella's stepmother and stepsisters (in some versions just the stepsisters) conspire to win the prince's hand for one of them. In the German telling of the story, the first stepsister fits into the slipper by cutting off a toe, but magical doves tell the prince to notice the blood dripping from the slipper, and he returns the false bride to her mother. The second stepsister fits into the slipper by cutting off her heel, but the same doves give her away. In all variants, Cinderella arrives and proves her identity by fitting into the slipper (in some cases she has kept the other, as in the Disney retelling). The evil stepsisters are sometimes punished for their deception by having their eyes pecked out by crows, or in other cases forgiven.

From my perception of the play, I was able to understand that the commonly perceived concept and approach towards the play has altered significantly over time. I established this understanding ...