The Daily Campus

Issue date: 4/27/09 Section: Focus

Media Credit: Caroline Wilke At the Jorgensen Center for Performing Arts, adults and children enjoyed a lively performance of Cinderella Sunday afternoon.

The fairy tale of Cinderella, the kind-hearted girl who escapes the clutches of her evil stepmother to marry a handsome prince, is one of the world's best known stories. Sunday afternoon at Jorgensen Center for the Performing Arts, the American Family Theater put a fresh spin on an old favorite.

The company put on a rousing musical rendition of the classic tale, and though the story may have been old, it was anything but stale.

Elaborate costumes, high energy and lots of audience participation kept this children's production exciting throughout. Little girls in princess dresses and sparkling tiaras danced in the aisles as Mortimer Mouse, the play's narrator, started the show. The oversized mouse ran through the aisles, giving high-fives, and encouraged everyone to wave their arms and stomp their feet during the opening song.

From there, the story may have happened exactly as expected, but it had enough playful revamps to keep everything interesting. The sweet, playful Cinderella sang and danced with her broom, hoping for a better life. The handsome Prince Frederick dodged slobbery kisses from Cinderella's bumbling stepsisters as he dreamed of being able to marry for love. And Mortimer Mouse gently guided the two together, making sure that Cinderella's fairy godmother would get her to the palace ball to meet her true love.

"I have a fairy godmother?" asked Cinderella. "But I can't see her."

"And you don't believe in things you can't see? Well, sometimes it's not enough to open your eyes. Sometimes, you have to open your heart," explained Mortimer Mouse.

The cast kept up a playful exchange with the audience, asking the children to help make sure the story happened properly.

"I didn't ask you to find a shoe, I asked you to find a girl," said Prince Frederick.

"You'll have to forgive him," said Mortimer to the audience. "He doesn't know the story as well as we do."

After the show, the excited kids mobbed the cast, eager for a chance to have their picture taken with Cinderella or the prince. One girl, shyly hiding her face in the folds of her glittery blue princess dress, quietly declared, "My favorite part was when Cinderella lost her shoe. I always like that part."

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