Repertory Philippines Disney’s Cinderella Kids

Straight from the Movie A frisson of delighted recognition ran through me every time a familiar song began, notably famous melodies like Cinderella’s A Dream Is A Wish Your Heart Makes and Fairy Godmother’s Bibbidi Bobbidi Boo.

Lines that are direct quotations from the movie elicited a smile, and seeing memorable characters like Jaq and Gus, the Stepmother with Anastasia and Drizella, the handsome Prince Charming and the doddering King brought to life onstage created a warm feeling for well-known figures that are such a beloved part of childhood memories.

Cris Villonco as Cinderella Former child star Cris Villonco is enchanting as the beleaguered Cinderella, with her first notes totally breathtaking in her solo A Dream Is A Wish Your Heart Makes, and her graceful movements an excellent mimicry of ballet dancers, which, incidentally, are the same inspiration for the Disney animators when they drew Cinderella.

Ballet in Theatre Cinderella’s co-director Joy Virata states in her notes, “When a child comes to the theater we want them to have a total artistic experience, with exposure to the visual arts, dance…”

The additional benefit of bringing the children to Repertory Philippines Disney’s Cinderella Kids will be their exposure to the world of ballet, with a pas de deux and solos from Philippine Ballet Theatre artists during the Ballet Sequence in Act II.

In particular, Philippine Ballet Theatre dancer Jared Tan shows excellent form as he does his gravity defying leaps and spectacular turns, putting great credence in the fact that he “placed 7th in the 2005 Asia-Pacific International Ballet Competition in Tokyo Japan and won the Senior Ballet Category Bronze Medal in the 2005 NAMCYA.”

More Please Since Disney’s Cinderella Kids runs for an hour and fifteen minutes, the show’s brevity is perfect for pre-school children, but I think it underestimates the audience’s capacity for magical enchantment. Everybody was willing to be cast in a fairy like spell for a longer period of time.

A Footnote On a last note, a piece of advice to all the females, from pre-school children to grandmothers who are going to watch Repertory Philippines Disney’s Cinderella Kids — make sure your feet are ready to be displayed and do wear easy to slip on and off footwear (I think you can make a pretty good guess as to the reason why).

Related Posts

Repertory Philippines Theatre Season 2007
Repertory Philippines Filipino Adaptation of La Cage Aux Folles
Repertory Philippines Man of La Mancha
Repertory Philippines Taming of the Shrew
Chuckles — Clowning Around at Auditions