CINDERELLA - A musical for children and their families at Theatre West
Reviewed by Amalisha HuEck
What a fun show with lots of interesting choices! A wicked stepmother, who is not so wicked (Barbara Mallory), has two puppets on each of her arms as her ugly daughters, giving them voices and animation. The pleasant, good looking Prince charming (David P. Johnson) comes on the stage riding a cleverly put together white horse. And the Fairy Godmother (Zoey Mae Dillon-Levine) is sparkling as the Godmother would, not with the simple but effective costume choice so much, but with her goodness. Great teamwork with lots of stage singing and dancing. Musical numbers are: More to Life, Silliest Girl in the City, Someone to Share my Life, Ingredients, I believe, Prince's Waltz and Someone Who Fits the Shoe.
The beautiful Cinderella (Jessica Rawls) sets the mood of the show as soon as she enters from the back of the theatre by welcoming everyone. The clever questions, such as: What school are you in? Is it a good school? And teachers? Are they good teachers? And that goes on and on throughout the play. Every moment is filled with much excitement and playful actions, in which the kids participate fully.
Theatre West welcomes birthday parties and school field trips, and there were a few schools attending. The theatre was absolutely packed with kids and watching them inhaling every moment of the show was priceless. Anticipation of the kids was extremely strong from the very beginning. They are invited to the stage many times, once to greed the Prince Charming who arrives on a white horse. And again, to join Cinderella and Price during the famous ball dance, where even some little girls had a moment with Prince dancing. Prince's desperation to find the beautiful young girl he just met is comparing the feet of the kids to a glass sleeper. I've never seen so much interaction with kids before. It was a joy to watch them participate and to watch parents, who so proudly observed their little ones participating in the story.
Book, and lyrics by Lloyd J. Schwartz with music by Michael Paul. Directed by Lloyd J. Schwartz. Produced by Barbara Mallory for Storybook Theatre, a division of Theatre West. Elise Walters is the choreographer. Leesa Freed and David Mingrino are stage managers. The friendly cast includes Jessica Rawls, Barbara Mallory, David P. Johnson, Scottie Nevil, and Zoey Mae-Dillon Levine. Understudies: Saratoga Ballantine and Kelsey Johnson.
Established in 1962, as an internationally acclaimed nonprofit arts organization, Theatre West is the oldest continually running theatre company in Los Angeles. 'The productions have toured both sides of the Atlantic, including the Edinburgh and Dublin Festivals, New York City, Atlanta, South Carolina, Seattle, San Francisco, and throughout California. Over the years Theatre West's plays have transferred to Broadway (Spoon River Anthology, Aesop in Central Park) and to feature films (A Bronx Tale, Faithful).'
Cinderella performances run February 17- June 1, 2024, Saturdays at 1 p.m. Theatre West is located at 3333 Cahuenga Blvd. West, in Los Angeles, close to Universal City, North Hollywood and Studio City. There is parking in a privately-operated lot across the street (fee charged, via credit card).
All seats $15. Reservations: (323) 851-7977. Online ticketing:
www.theatrewest.org
Website:
www.theatrewest.org