On Massenet’s Cinderella – late (1896) and dramaturgically unconventional – the librettist and composer Henri Cain worked rather like Verdi on Aida. The first two acts are fairly predictable exposition (there’s even a ballet for Prince Charming’s would-be spouses, ‘correctly’ placed in Act 2), then a leap-in-the-dark Act 3 goes psychologically beyond the opera’s Perrault fairy-tale source. Here Lucette (Cinders) plans to run away from her horrid step-family – and the seemingly unavailable Prince – with her kind father. But she really wants to die and ends up going it on her own, before being led by the Fairy Godmother to duet with the Prince’s voice in an enchanted forest (both are present but neither can see each other). As the Prince is sung by a (darker-coloured) soprano falcon the result here is a lavish celebration of the female voice anticipating Strauss’s Rosenkavalier.

And quite a tour de force for the title role (who sings for much of Act 3’s nearly 40 minutes, including a big aria and a major duet), here taken by the Anglo-Swiss Kim-Lillian Strebel who is, luckily, the only truly outstanding voice here, with great security and cherishable tone throughout. Only moderate-level support is, otherwise, the order of the day, even from Orozco’s father and the roulades of Melnikova’s Fairy. Conductor Bollon keeps a firm hand on dynamics and pace but his orchestra lacks requisite colour and swagger for the deal of ceremonial music and mystery for the lovers.

The dramatic experiments of composer and librettist provide the joint stage directors (Motta is also the designer) with a vehicle for some Regietheater tropes, including setting the story within the framework of a circus performance. (I’ve no idea why, but it doesn’t interfere apart from in an overuse of the stage revolve.) What would have helped is tighter disciplining of the chorus and children’s movements, especially their exits and half-in-view spying. But the duet of the two ‘blind’ lovers in Act 3 is seriously and movingly done, as is the eventual trying on the slipper in Act 4.

The current rival DVD (but not Blu ray) comes from the Royal Opera House and stars Joyce DiDonato and Alice Coote and is cheaper. So competition might appear to be over – but the seriousness of this German production sets up more mystery about the work than Laurent Pelly’s pretty London show. If only it had been rehearsed more precisely. The final recommendation is for the piece itself – do try it.