ACU Opera debuted Jules Massenet’s “Cendrillon,” with shows on Friday and Sunday. Staged entirely in French, this operatic rendition of the classic tale immersed the audience in the journey of Cinderella, in the modern day. Dr. Rick Piersall, Director of ACU Opera and Music Department Chair, expressed the unique inspiration behind this rendition, drawing parallels to the work of director John Hughes in the early eighties. Piersall said, “This classic fairy tale receives one of its most beautiful treatments with the music of Massenet’s Cendrillon. I have taken inspiration from the director John Hughes, who, in the early eighties, resurrected the ‘teen movie’ genre for the setting of this production.”
-
- Pandolphe, played by sophomore vocal performance major Corbin Gray, sings while holding a janitor’s mop. (Photo by Daniel Curd)
-
- Madame de la Haltiėre, played by senior music teaching major Jenna Rickerhauser, leads her daughters in a song. (Photo by Daniel Curd)
-
- Cendrillion, played by sophomore vocal performance major Poppy Teague, sings while in her makeshift room. (Photo by Daniel Curd)
-
- Fairy Godmother, played by sophomore theatre major Megan Sloane, sings a final song. (Photo by Daniel Curd)
-
- Cendrillion’s family members sing while Cendrillion waits at home. (Photo by Daniel Curd)
-
- Fairy Godmother, played by sophomore theatre major Megan Sloane, helps Cendrillion, played by sophomore vocal performance major Poppy Teague, put on her glass slipper. (Photo by Daniel Curd)
-
- Fairy Godmother, played by sophomore theatre major Megan Sloane, and Cendrillion, played by sophomore vocal performance major Poppy Teague, sing together before heading to the ball. (Photo by Daniel Curd)
-
- Prince Charming, played by senior vocal performance major Ryan Young, talks with Cendrillion for the first time. (Photo by Daniel Curd)
-
- Students dance at the ball. (Photo by Daniel Curd)
-
- Prince Charming, played by senior vocal performance major Ryan Young, dances with Cendrillon, played by sophomore vocal performance major Poppy Teague, at the ball. (Photo by Daniel Curd)
-
- Students strike a pose after the DJ plays the Nirvana song “Smells Like Teen Spirit.” (Photo by Daniel Curd)
-
- Pandolphe, played by sophomore vocal performance major Corbin Gray, holds Cendrillion’s, hand. (Photo by Daniel Curd)
