Rodgers Cinderella
View record and artist detailsRecord and Artist Details
Composer or Director: Richard Rodgers
Label: Columbia Broadway Masterworks
Magazine Review Date: 9/1999
Media Format: CD or Download
Media Runtime: 52
Mastering:
ADD
Catalogue Number: SMK60889
Tracks:
| Composition | Artist Credit |
|---|---|
| Cinderella |
Richard Rodgers, Composer
Richard Rodgers, Composer |
Author: Adrian Edwards
Having failed to unlock the musical key to a stage adaptation of Shaw’s Pygmalion, Rodgers and Hammerstein moved on to the Cinderella story itself, capitalizing on My Fair Lady’s triumph by casting Julie Andrews as their Cinderella. The show went out live on March 31st, 1957 on the CBS TV network where it was watched by more than 107 million people (Oklahoma! in its five year run on Broadway managed a total of no more than 4 million!). In the note, Jon Cypher (Prince Charming) recalls walking outside the studio on Broadway after the showing, ‘it looked like a post-nuclear city, there was nothing going on ….’
Cinderella remains one of R&H’s most delightful and melodic scores, abounding in dance rhythms. The transformation scene and a lively ensemble, ‘A lovely night’, where Cinderella, her stepmother and the ugly sisters drive to the ball to a sparkling two-piano obbligato over orchestra, highlights Robert Russell Bennett’s deft touch as Rodgers’s orchestrator. Julie Andrews, who was 21 at the time, brings a pristine freshness to the title-role. This CD reissue, which contains four bonus tracks, might have been recorded yesterday by producer Goddard Lieberson. The inclusion of a fair amount of dialogue adds to the illusion of bringing that ‘lovely night’ right before one.'
Cinderella remains one of R&H’s most delightful and melodic scores, abounding in dance rhythms. The transformation scene and a lively ensemble, ‘A lovely night’, where Cinderella, her stepmother and the ugly sisters drive to the ball to a sparkling two-piano obbligato over orchestra, highlights Robert Russell Bennett’s deft touch as Rodgers’s orchestrator. Julie Andrews, who was 21 at the time, brings a pristine freshness to the title-role. This CD reissue, which contains four bonus tracks, might have been recorded yesterday by producer Goddard Lieberson. The inclusion of a fair amount of dialogue adds to the illusion of bringing that ‘lovely night’ right before one.'
Rodgers Cinderella
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