Lineage Dance Company, January 27, 2018, Lineage Performing Arts Center

Pasadena-based Lineage Dance Company produced an unusual and very personal show called "Stories of Identity: Gender & Sexuality" that was touching and thought provoking. In it, five speakers alternated with short dances connected to the theme. The speakers, all of whom were either non-heterosexual, non-binary gender, or both, told of their personal experiences such as coming out during high school, a mother's refusal to acknowledge a same-sex relationship, learning to appreciate drag culture as a gay man, and living in the world as a non-binary person. The dances were performed to live renditions of songs including two from Hedwig and the Angry Inch (Origin of Love, Wicked Little Town), and a pair of recordings of wedding vows from a gay wedding. The dancers, led by Artistic Director Hilary Thomas, were strong, supple, and sensitive.

A Very British Lesbian, November 9, 2017, Santa Monica Playhouse

Fiona Goodwin tells her sexuality life story with dry British wit. It includes being the subject of an exorcism when she was a teenager, training to become a nun, travelling the world, a last-ditch attempt at dating a rich, unattractive man, falling in love with a married woman, and finally finding acceptance and happiness in LA. Recently workshopped, the production was rough, but the emotions were real and powerful.

From the program notes: "Trouble was - the truth about myself was so unattractive to me and all the people I cared about - that it was to be buried. Apparently, you can't bury things about yourself selectively. All of me got shut down at some level. Coming out does mean coming out...in every way!"

The Nutcracker, December 2, 2017, The Broad Stage

Westside Ballet of Santa Monica gave a very creditable performance, accompanied by the Santa Monica College Symphony, which was soothingly unscreechy in the hardest parts of the score.

Hamilton, October 21, 2017 (2pm), Hollywood Pantages Theatre

This was my first time seeing Hamilton. 

THIS WAS MY FIRST TIME SEEING HAMILTON. 

Conclusion? It really is all that and a bag of chips, and it translates beyond its original Broadway cast (whom I'm familiar with from the soundtrack). 

Cast:

Alexander Hamilton - Michael Luwoye

Eliza Hamilton - Solea Pfeiffer

Aaron Burr, sir - Joshua Henry

Angelica Schuyler - Emmy Raver-Lampman

George Washington - Isaiah Jordan

Lafayette/Thomas Jefferson - Jordan DOnica

Mulligan/Madison - Desmond Newson

King George - Rory O'Malley

The Muppets Take the Bowl, September 9, 2017, Hollywood Bowl

This is one of those things I didn't know was on my bucket list until it happened. Who could have predicted a live stage show by the entire Muppet cast? It was a thing of beauty and wonder, and I smiled the whole way through.  The show was hosted by Kermit and actor Bobby Moynihan (from Saturday Night Live) and featured Thomas Wilkins conducting the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra. Pigs In Space, manah-manah, Swedish Chef - it was all there. My favorite part was Dr. Teeth and the Electric Mayhem performing David Bowie's Suffragette City. The show ended with, what else, Rainbow Connection.

The Red Shoes, September 26, 2017, Ahmanson Theatre

Capsule review: Amazing score, great scenic design, very good dancing, and exactly the kind of choreography one expects from Matthew Bourne. A plot synopsis would have been somewhat helpful.

Performed by New Adventures dance company.

Principals:
Boris Lermontov: Sam Archer
Victoria Page: Cordelia Braithwaite
Julian Craster: Dominic North
Irina Boronskaya: Nicole Kabera

Cinderella, February 17, 2013, Cobb Energy Performing Arts Center

This family performance by Atlanta Ballet had one strike against it from the get-go: Prokofiev was not at his best when he wrote the score to this ballet. It has some fantastic moments, but, having performed to the full score in the past, I find it to be largely uninspiring. The choreographer, Donald Mahler, also did not do us any favors in what he kept when whittling it down to the 70-minute run time. 

The dancers were all from the Atlanta Ballet Fellowship Ensemble and did a creditable job with both the choreography and the character dancing. Rebekah Diaddigo played the Stepmother just right, with Madison Donaldson and Savannah O'Connor as the spoiled and selfish Stepsisters. Xiwen Li was a radiant Cinderella and the highlight of the show, while Kelly Prather was a regal but slightly stiff Fairy Godmother. Kaleb Elmore, as the Prince, is promising but needs more time to develop.

I can only speculate as to the reason (not enough costumes?), but there were only 3 couples at the "Grand Ball." Not very grand, and it dragged on and on. The dancing clock that announced midnight was a cute touch, but otherwise there was not much memorable about the choreography. The final verdict, though, is that my four-year-old daughter loved being at the theater. They could have been doing just about anything on the stage and she would have been thrilled, but it made the trip worthwhile.

Dracula, February 9, 2013, Cobb Energy Performing Arts Center

Atlanta's Ballet's production of Michael Pink's Dracula was largely ok. I was not blown away by Philip Feeney's music, but it did the job. The sets and costumes were quite nice. The dancers were both technically very good and committed to their characters, but the choreography was only rarely compelling. 

One of the highlights was supposed to be the duet between Dracula (Jonah Hooper) and Jonathan Harker (Jesse Tyler). Mr. Hooper's Dracula was suitably creepy, although it was unclear to me what exactly he was after with Mr. Harker. He dominates him, but to what end? His intentions with Lucy (Alessa Rogers) and Mina Harker (Tara Lee) were more clear, and his duet of near-seduction of Mina to the vampire lifestyle was powerful due to the clear character transition made by Ms. Lee. His duet with Lucy was upstaged by the escape of his wig from his head, which slithered down Ms. Rogers back and onto the floor at one point. 

The program notes were extensive, but it was still somewhat difficult to follow the complicated story. Best Freudian slip in the program notes: "Only Harker is sensitive to the impending dancer (sic)." The shows dragged a bit at the beginning of the second act as we waited for Dracula to appear for tea at a hotel in England, but the surreal slow-motion of the background dancers as he appears to Lucy was a nice touch. The work of the vampire ensemble in the final scene, led by Ms. Rogers, was more exciting than the final vanquishing of Dracula. Mmm, steak.

Secret, February 3, 2013, Callanwolde Fine Arts Center

I had heard of CORE Performance Company back when I lived in Houston, but never caught one of their shows. Then I moved to Atlanta in 2006, and since then had STILL not caught one of their shows. Since they are based in Atlanta and perform in both cities, you'd think...but no. So when I saw that they were performing something on a Sunday afternoon in a venue where it would be reasonable to take my four-year-old daughter with me, I jumped at the chance. Seeing that the work was co-choreographed by Becky Valls of University of Houston, whose work I had seen here and here, made it even more appealing.

This dance was a set piece made specifically for the Callanwolde Fine Arts Center, which is housed in a 1920 mansion built by a son of the founder of Coca Cola (so it's "verra nice"). The performance took place throughout the center of the main floor, including the grand stairway. There were musicians in the corners, and the six dancers sometimes used their shoes to define where they were going to be dancing.

I admit that it's been quite a while since I've watched modern dance, and maybe I've lost my taste for it. Or maybe this piece was too disjointed. It was certainly awkward to move around after the dancers and then find out you were sitting where they planned to dance next. There was not much of a narrative to the performance, and the music was no help. The only thing that kept me interested was watching my daughter's response to a dancer being 2 feet away from her. She remained engaged for almost all of the 70-minute performance.

Shatner's World, January 13, 2013, Cobb Energy Performing Arts Center

The Shat is a consummate performer, and he had no trouble holding my interest as he spent almost two hours uninterrupted on the stage. (He's sure spry for a 81-year-old!) This one man show followed the outline of his autobiography Up Till Now (2008), but did not repeat the material as much as enhance it. Frequent photos and video clips from his career broke up the monologue. To my delight, he even showed a video clip from the documentary William Shatner's Gonzo Ballet about the work Margo Sappington created for the Milwaukee Ballet to his album Has Been.

The Man in Black, March 24, 2012, Cobb Energy Performing Arts Center

Never got to a review. Bad me. Posting program notes for later reference.

Atlanta Ballet

"Moments of Dis"

choreography: Juel D. Lane

music: Quentin Johnson

"The Man in Black"

choreography: James Kudelka

music: Johnny Cash

dancers: Lisa Barrieau, Jacob Bush, Christian Clark, Jonah Hooper

songs (maybe in order): In My Life, Four Strong Winds, Sam Hall, If You Could Read My Mind, Hurt, and Further On Up The Road

Loved this piece. Subtle and mesmerizing, like the Windows "Mystify" screensaver. Expected greatest-hits Cash songs, but was pleasantly surprised that using all covers let me focus on his voice, not the songs.

"1st Flash"

choreography: Jorma Elmo

music: Jean Sibelius

Avenue Q, March 17, 2012, Horizon Theatre

Talk about the little musical that could. This show started out off-Broadway in one of the smallest theaters in that location, and then took Broadway (and the Tonys) by storm. It's easy to see why. Funny, smart, risque, and with a huge heart, this quickly became one of my most memorable theater experiences.

I remember hearing how great this show was when it came out, but since it won its three Tonys back in 2004, that and the puppets was about all I recalled when I bought the tickets. (I did not actually recall the awards.) The central character is a recent college graduate named Princeton with a degree in English. He had a starting job lined up that falls through at the beginning of the show. He then spend the rest of the show getting to know his neighbors in the low-rent part of town (hence the play's title) while trying to figure out what to do next. What with the downturn in the economy being so hard on recent college grads, and the fact that the internet is still used for porn (the subject of one song), this musical remains as topical today as 9 years ago. Each song was as good or better than the last, but my favorites, in addition to "The Internet Is for Porn," were "It Sucks to Be Me," Everyone's a Little Bit Racist," There's a Fine, Fine Line," and "Schadenfreude."

The date of this show was part of an extended run, so it's no surprise that the actors had mastered the puppetry arts. It was a little odd watching the speaking puppets while also looking at the actors for additional facial expressions, but the duality was surprisingly enriching, like watching two faces of the same person at one time. A special shout-out to Nick Arapoglou (Princeton) and Mary Nye Bennett (Kate Monster) as the leads. Dustin Lewis was endearing as the "questioning" Rod. And let's not forget Spencer Stephens as Gary Coleman!

Snow White, Cobb Energy Center, February 18, 2012

Atlanta Ballet puts on one "family-friendly" show a year, and this is the first one I've been too. I attended it with the reason I took a 3 1/2 year break from blogging: my 3-1/2-year-old daughter. She has been coming to ballet class with Mommy since before she was born and started taking her own class last fall. She loves dancing, and I love sharing it with her. Snow White turned out to be a perfect show for her.

It was interesting seeing this fairy tale ballet just after Twyla Tharp's The Princess and The Goblin. This Snow White was choreographed by  Bruce Wells of the Boston Ballet. It is about 45 minutes long, total, and included a live narrator positioned to the side of the stage. (His mike was set a little loud. Come on people, there are KIDS.) Most of the cast were students at the Atlanta Ballet Center for Dance Education. They did quite a respectable job, including Emily Docherty, who danced the title role. A few roles were danced by members of the Atlanta Ballet, including the enjoyable Evil Queen (Melissa Mitchell) and the forgettable Prince Charming (Benjamin Stone).

It's no surprise this production was more accessible than The Princess and The Goblin; it's aimed at children, after all. Maybe I just expected less, but I enjoyed the dancing Tree Spirits and Forest Creatures more than most parts of Ms. Tharp's work. The movement was both freer and more formal, and the production kept my daughter's interest, in spite of us being almost high enough up in the balcony to require air masks.

The Princess and The Goblin, February 12, 2012, Cobb Energy Performing Arts Center

What do you get when you cross an obscure fairy tale, decent music, and a famous choreographer? Atlanta Ballet's new production of The Princess and the Goblin, choreographed by Twyla Tharp. I had high hopes for this show, because, well, TWLYA THARP. In The Upper Room. Nine Sinatra Songs. Come Fly Away. Am I right?

Sort of. The Princess and the Goblin is a well-executed piece. The music of Schubert, put together by Ms. Tharp and the music historian Richard Burke, makes a score that flows well from one scene to the next. The choreography is suitably complex, with interesting moments and some striking scenes. The costumes, by Anne Armit of the Royal Winnipeg Ballet, are hit and miss - the purposefully outlandish costumes on the adults in the first scene hit the mark, but the modern street clothes on the children did not mesh with the more classical costumes on the adults. The story was not elaborated in the program and left me somewhat confused.

Here's the synopsis (from what I gathered): The adults at court, including the king, ignore their children to focus on "adult" things, to the extent that the children are abducted without their notice. Only Princess Irene and her friend Curdie see what happens, and they follow the abductors, a race call Goblin, to their possibly underground kingdom. For some reason, the Goblin King and Queen are played by Irene's father and her sisters' nanny (are they evil?). The ghost/spirit of Irene's great-great-grandmother guides her to womanhood by teaching her some smooth moves and how to wear pointe shoes. Irene then teaches said skilz to the Goblin to gain their trust, and they turn on the King and Queen long enough for her to help the children escape. Then everyone dances together, the human adults are redeemed and no longer ignore their children, and the Goblin leave them alone for the rest of eternity. Or something.

Alessa Rogers as Princess Irene was lovely, although she has the sort of freakishly arched feet that leave me wondering how she stays on pointe at all. She was feisty and believable as someone who could outwit the Goblin. John Welker was suitably unyielding as both King Papa and the King of the Goblin, and danced a nice pas de deux with Tara Lee (the Queen) that was unfortunately overshadowed by other action on the stage. Rachel Van Buskirk stood out in a pas de deux (with ???) in which she comically breaks in her new Goblin-style pointe shoes. My favorite performance was that of Jesse Tyler, who along with Christian Clark was a royal guard who eventually converted to Princess Irene's side. He had just the right mix of attitude, goofiness, and charm to really define his character. (Mr. Clark, one of my favorite dancers, played it too straight.) Jacob Bush, playing Curdie, was pleasant, but did not have much of a part to work with. Christine Winkler rounded out the cast as great-great-grandmother Irene.

I suppose it's not fair to complain that this was not enough like a traditional story ballet. The world has moved on, and no one will ever create another Swan Lake or Coppelia. But given the hype that surrounded this production, with the emphasis on the goal of creating a new story ballet, I wanted more than I got. Somehow Ms. Tharp managed to both play it too straight and not straight enough.

Atlanta Ballet, March 14, 2008, Cobb Energy Performing Arts Center

The Atlanta Ballet has a new home. Much as I liked the Fox Theater, their former home, it isn't the best venue for ballet performances. There's also the fact that parking was a pain and I didn't always feel safe walking to my car at night. The shiny, new Cobb Energy Center offers improvement on all fronts, plus it's closer to my house! It's not quite as chichi as the Wortham Center or even the Hobby Center, but it's still quite nice. I have hopes that the move will elevate Atlanta Ballet's stature and ambitions.

But enough about that. AB's first production in its new home was a mixed rep of pieces by George Balanchine, Diane Coburn Bruning, and Twyla Tharp. The first piece was Balanchine's "Serenade," which was performed for the most part rather sloppily. I also simply CANNOT get over the fact that the dancers use rosin on a Marley floor and, as a result, squeak like rusty huinges whenever they move, something that's particularly unappealing against the exquisite calmness of Tchaikovsky's Serenade for Strings. While dancers must feel secure for their comfort and safety, other professional companies routinely find a quiet way to achieve this goal. I mean, come on!

Fortunately squeaky shoes were not a distraction in the rousing "Ramlin' Suite" by Diane Coburn Bruning. Set to music by the Red Clay Ramblers, the piece was a lighthearted fusion of contemporary ballet and Appalachian charm.

Tharp's "In the Upper Room" closed out the show and, frankly, left me stunned at the choreographic accomplishment of the piece. As far as I can tell, the music was written by Philip Glass specifically for this piece. It reminded me of the music for the film Koyaanisqatsi, which was also written by Mr. Glass at about the same period. Or at least I think it did; it's been a reeaallly long time since I've seen that movie. The music contrived to have a beat without having a rhythm; the driving sounds evolved from one place to another but did not develop. Going on for a continuous 40 minutes, it had the drawn out qualities of Ravel's "Bolero" without the repetition or crescendo (a plus, in my blog). Tharp's choreography was divided into sections, and there was some development as the costumes lost layers to go from black-and-white with red highlights to red with black-and-white highlights. This helped things from becoming monotonous. The set was two stories, but the dancers stayed on the floor, dancing underneath an ever-present fog that added mystery to the proceedings.

I confess that it has been long enough since I saw the piece that I am unable to characterize the movement beyond saying that it was athletic but clearly ballet. The dancers largely directed their attention out to the audience rather than towards each other. The entire experience was mesmerizing and rather like watching a particularly fascinating screen saver. The dancers gave it their all and received a well deserved standing ovation at the end.

Moving Forward, November 3, 2007, Rialto Center for the Performing Arts

This show was a benefit for the Atlanta Community Food Bank. Sadly, it reminded me of the Illumination Project, in that there was really good dancing and no one came to watch it. This is only the second time this benefit has been produced, so maybe word is still getting around. The participating companies were Ruth Mitchell Dance Theatre, Northeast Atlanta Ballet, Moving in the Spirit, CityDance Ensemble, The Georgia Ballet, the Atlanta Philharmonic Orchestra, CORE Performance Company, Atlanta Ballet, and Giwayen Mata. Kudos to all of them for participating.

Ruth Mitchell Dance Theatre presented "Birthday Variations", a lighthearted piece set to orchestral variations of the song "Happy Birthday to You." (Sadly, music and choreography were not credited in the program.) The choreography reminded me of a silly-in-a-good-way piece I saw last year by Sam Watson, "Hi Jinks,"and I later discovered that he was also responsible for "Birthday Variations."

City Dance Ensemble presented three numbers, one of them being "Forbidden," described in the program as "a Polynesian-inspired love story involving a forbidden attraction and a jealous husband's rage." Choreography was by Saroya Corbett. Also presented was the ballet classic "The Dying Swan," danced by Christen Edwards. Ms. Edwards displayed a rare understanding of the classical styling of this piece, and watching her was a real treat.

Also a real treat was seeing Ben Stevenson's "Three Preludes" performed by Tara Lee and Jonah Hooper of the Atlanta Ballet. The first time I saw this piece was at Houston Ballet's tribute to Mr. Stevenson on the occasion of his retirement as director of the company. I don't recall offhand the dancers in that performance, but I do recall the program notes saying that Mr. Stevenson choreographed this piece for Roberts Scevers and his partner(?), who were students with the Harkness Youth Ballet. I used to take the occasional ballet class from Mr. Scevers, which I enjoyed a great deal, and remember thinking during the HB performance that the choreography suited his movement style. In the Atlanta production, while Mr. Hooper danced well, he was emotionally reserved, especially in contrast with Ms. Lee, whose emotion and beautiful lines brought out the beauty of the choreography.

Closing the program was an energetic and enthusiastic display of dances from the Susu people of Guinea, West Africa by the all-female group Giwayen Mata.

Emergence-See!, July 28, 2007, Woodruff Arts Center

I had the good fortune to hear Daniel Beaty, the writer and actor for this one-man show, be interviewed on NPR a few days before he came to Atlanta to perform. How often does that happen? Anyway, the show sounded so fascinating, I bought tickets as soon as I could.

The story revolves around a slave ship that mysteriously appears in the water next to the Statue of Liberty in the present day. The ship is deserted, but people are drawn to the island to take a closer look. The cast of characters include a TV reporter, a man suffering from schizophrenia after the death of his wife, the man's two sons, a homeless man, and a transvestite. The show explores the questions (as stated on Mr. Beaty's website) "What does centuries of slavery do to the psyche of humanity? And how free are we really at the dawn of the 21st Century?"

Mr. Beaty does an excellent job infusing each character with a distinct personality. He switches from one to another in a heartbeat, but the viewer is never left behind. Part of the action is a poetry slam, and we heard four amazing poems. Oh yeah, and he's also an opera singer.

Sleeping Beauty, May 5, 2007, Fox Theatre

It's been over a month since I saw this performance, so my memory of it has become somewhat sketchy; however, here's what stuck with me. This was a competent production by Atlanta Ballet. The dancing was solid but lacked dazzle. Naomi-Jane Dixon was sweet as Aurora, and was supported ably by her prince, Tamila. Her balances in the Rose adagio were evanescent, and, though no fault of her own, her arms just aren't long enough to form the grand poses required by this role. Of the fairies, two stood out: Kelsey Yip as Violente (the "finger fairy," as my mom and I call it), and apprentice Rachel Van Buskirk as one of the (pleasantly) highest-strung Canari's I've seen. Also nice were Jacob Bush, Nadia Mara, Christine Necessary, and Joshua Reynolds, listed as Gems (Silver, Gold, and Sapphire) rather than fairies and performing a dual pas de deux.

A complaint about the music: Atlanta Ballet can't afford to hire live musicians and so uses recorded music for most of their performances. I don't have a problem with this; it's not ideal, but it's reality for many companies. But what tone-deaf (style-deaf?) person picked the soundtrack? The adagio of the wedding pas de deux between Aurora and her prince is accented by typical Tchaikovsky runs and add a graceful counterpoint. Unless, that is, they are performed by squirrels running across a piano, jarring one out of the lovely reverie that is the music. I mean, come on!

Love's Labour's Lost, March 31, 2007, The Shakespeare Tavern

Cool. Way cool. Atlanta has a theater company (The Atlanta Shakespeare Company) dedicated to presenting the works of Shakespeare in the "Original Practice," or shows produced the way the Bard would have done it himself. Not only that, they have their own building that resembles The Globe. Uber cool.

Mr. Silvershoes and I went early to sample the British pub fair served in the theater before the show. True to billing, it was a bit bland and overcooked. Happily, the same could not be said of the production.

Love's Labour's Lost is one of Shakespeare's earlier plays, which I mention for no reason whatsoever. It centers on four men who have just vowed a 3-year stint of reclusive celibacy in order to further their studies. Naturally, shortly thereafter a beautiful princess (did I mention one of the men is a king?) and her three attendants appear at court on a business call. Romance ensues. Confusion reigns. Someone dies. In other words, a typical Shakespeare play.

While the actors were all good, some stood out - none more than Jeff McKerley, who played the nominal lead, Lord Berwone (and has his own web page). He looks a bit like Steve Martin and is equally hilarious. Able to switch from sarcasm to tender longing at the flip of a sixpence, the audience was eager to follow. Jeff Watkins, the artistic director, played a daffy but engaging Don Adriano de Armado. His Spanish accent, while certainly adding to the comedy, was sometimes a bit hard to understand. Matthew Felten, as Armado's page Moth, and Troy Willis, as the princess's attendant Boyet, were sly comedic observers.

This play includes what may be the most ridiculous love letter ever written, that written by Armado to the village wench Jaquenetta. Because to excerpt it is not enough, here it is in its entirety:

By heaven, that thou art fair, is most infallible; true, that thou art beauteous; truth itself, that thou art lovely. More fairer than fair, beautiful than beauteous, truer than truth itself, have commiseration on thy heroical vassal! The magnanimous and most illustrate king Cophetua set eye upon the pernicious and indubitate beggar Zenelophon; and he it was that might rightly say, Veni, vidi, vici; which to annothanize in the vulgar,--O base and obscure vulgar!--videlicet, He came, saw, and overcame: he came, one; saw two; overcame, three. Who came? the king: why did he come? to see: why did he see? to overcome: to whom came he? to the beggar: what saw he? the beggar: who overcame he? the beggar. The conclusion is victory: on whose side? the king's. The captive is enriched: on whose side? the beggar's. The catastrophe is a nuptial: on whose side? the king's: no, on both in one, or one in both. I am the king; for so stands the comparison: thou the beggar; for so witnesseth thy lowliness. Shall I command thy love? I may: shall I enforce thy love? I could: shall I entreat thy love? I will. What shalt thou exchange for rags? robes; for tittles? titles; for thyself? me. Thus, expecting thy reply, I profane my lips on thy foot, my eyes on thy picture. and my heart on thy every part. Thine, in the dearest design of industry, DON ADRIANO DE ARMADO

It's Shakespeare, so I could go on, but I shan't.

Cinderella, March 23, 2007, Cobb Civic Center

I've never been crazy about the music to Cinderella. It was written by Sergei Prokofiev, whose music I like in general, and to be sure there are some parts of the music that I enjoy. For the most part, though, I find it a bit boring, and I think that colors my perception of the ballet. So going in to this performance by the Ruth Mitchell Dance Theatre, my expectations were modest.

Before the curtain came up, a woman came on stage and spoke for a few minutes about how expensive it was to put on the show. As an example, she had one of the dancers model a costume which she said cost $700. (Costume mistress daughter's note: $700, and it's made on a leotard?) She also told the story of how the choreographer, Tom Pazic, originally set this ballet on the Atlanta Ballet in the 70's, and how it had only been performed once since, by the Sacramento Ballet. This immediately made me wonder if perhaps the reason it hadn't been staged many times was that it wasn't a knock-out. This turned out to be the case.

Unfortunately, the quality of the dancing turned out to be at about the same level as the music and choreography. Ericka Shannon, as Cinderella, was a happy exception. While her line could be a touch more defined, she portrayed the character's innocence and sweetness with a natural charm. Also notable was Ashleigh Whitworth as the Autumn Fairy. Vincas Greene and Dean Williams were hilarious as the Stepsisters, and even danced on pointe in their size-12 shoes.