By Angela Hatcher
Orange County’s Arts & Learning Conservatory brings the much-loved children’s classic fairytale, an adaption of Rogers and Hammerstein’s musical, Cinderella, to life at Garden Grove’s historic Gem Theater and it proves to be a crowd-pleaser for all ages.
On alternating weekends, the role of rags-to-riches “Cinders” is shared by Cassidy Dorain and Makinzie Warne-McGraw, and while they are uniquely different from each other, both girls bring their own special magic to the lead character.
By Angela Hatcher
Orange County’s Arts & Learning Conservatory brings the much-loved children’s classic fairytale, an adaption of Rogers and Hammerstein’s musical, Cinderella, to life at Garden Grove’s historic Gem Theater and it proves to be a crowd-pleaser for all ages.
On alternating weekends, the role of rags-to-riches “Cinders” is shared by Cassidy Dorain and Makinzie Warne-McGraw, and while they are uniquely different from each other, both girls bring their own special magic to the lead character.
Alex Damien portrays the young and handsome Prince Charming quite nicely, and his vocals heard in the song, “Ten Minutes More” establishes him as a real charmer.
The appeal in this timeless tale may be perceived in Fairy Godmother’s proclamation that “Impossible things are happening every day,” because after all, who would have thought that a poor ragamuffin named Cinderella would become a princess, or that a love-struck young prince, equipped with nothing more than a missing girl’s lost shoe, would find his true love?
In Cinderella’s opening scene, The Herald (Alyssa Gauss) joyfully sings “The Prince is Giving a Ball,” and the village is abuzz with excitement.
As the story goes, poor and selfless Cinderella resides with her Wicked Stepmother (Grace Shakelford) and her two ugly stepsisters, Joy (Alaina Gauss) and Portia (Sarah Hansen). With outlandish hair-dos, make-up and bustles, the endearing siblings make an especially funny pair of “mean girls,” and, along with their evil mom, they do what they can to keep Cinderella from having any fun. Cinderella’s secret pals, however, are a handful of tiny gray mice, Gus Gus (Kalia Plum), Jacque (Ella Young), Lily (Ella Miller), Mary (Rachel Peters), Squeaky (Nova Hubbard), and Lucifer the Cat (Emily Welty), and they come up with a plan to make a dress for Cinderella to wear to the ball.
When the dress is ruined, Cinderella’s Fairy Godmother (Alexandria Pisano) steps in, magic wand in hand, and aside from a few rules about a midnight curfew, the awestruck Cinderella is soon to experience the time of her life. And then … the transformation. Without special effects from a blockbuster Universal show or a Disney extravaganza, turning a pumpkin into a full-scale gilded “horse drawn” carriage and a simple maid into a bejeweled princess in front of an audience may be challenging. However, Arts & Learning’sCinderella captures the timeless enchantment with sound effects, strobe lights, special lighting, a sprinkling of fairy dust, and, in that moment, it’s magical.
This is a large ensemble featuring 29 cast members who are between the ages of 6 to 12, and the cast is solid and well-rehearsed. With bright colors, satin and velvety flowing gowns, bustles, petticoats, bouffant wigs, and sparkling jewels, the elaborate costumes clearly distinguish the characters, and the set design, while fairly simple, is effective.
Some song highlights are “It’s Possible” featuring Cinderella and her Godmother, “A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes” sung by Cinderella, the Mice, and Lucifer, and “Your Majesties” starring Head Chef (Kate Marshall) Queen (Jordan Crowley), Sister Queen (Madeleine Chocholaty) and the ensemble.
While there are no surprises, Arts & Learning Conservatory’s Cinderella leaves audiences with a heartfelt reminder that it is indeed “Possible,” and everyone’s having a ball.
Cinderella
The Gem Theater
12852 Main St.
Garden Grove]
Tickets: 714 728-7100
Performances run through Nov. 16
