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Rossini's treatment of the Cinderella story discards the magic elements and makes it a morality tale--no fairy godmother, pumpkin coach, or glass slipper, but a sweet, intelligent heroine, abused by a dysfunctional family, who triumphs over adversity. She meets and marries her Prince Charming as a just reward for her simple, spontaneous virtue, a plot that could easily become banal but doesn't. This simple tale becomes a great evening's entertainment thanks to Rossini's music--glittering, bubbly, rich in wit and pathos--and the hilarious imagination of librettist Jacopo Ferretti. La Cenerentola makes virtuoso musical demands in the romantic lead roles of Angelina (Cinderella) and the Prince, and it calls for carefully controlled comic skills in the supporting cast, particularly the mean stepfather and stepsisters and the valet, Dandini, who masquerades as the Prince through most of the plot. All those requirements are well fulfilled in this 1988 production. Ann Murray is an appealing and believable Angelina--not easy with a character almost too good to be true. Francisco Araiza's tenor voice soars in the Prince's arias. Walter Berry is brilliant as the oafish stepfather, Don Magnifico, nearly stealing the show at a couple of points. The sisters are deftly portrayed by Angela Denning and Daphne Evangelistos. A special elegance associated with the Salzburg Festival is well-exemplified in all aspects of this Cenerentola, including Mauro Pagano's staging, Michael Hampe's directing, and Riccardo Chailly's conducting of the great Vienna Philharmonic. --Joe McLellan
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