There are many many different types of performance that has influenced pantomime and made it what you know panto to be today.
There are also many nuances and variations of the different tales that make up the canon of panto productions and Cinderella is no exception. This story goes back centuries and there are several ancient versions of it originating from all over the world.
In Ancient Greece there is a tale of young Rhodopis who was bathing when her sandal was taken by an eagle and dropped on the lap of the King. The King sought the land to find the owner of the sandal and eventually asks Rhodopis to be his Queen.
Back in 860 in China another version of the story was written called Ye Xian about a hardworking girl who befriends a fish that is a reincarnation of her mother who was killed by her step mother and sister. The bones of the fish become magical and produce a beautiful outfit for a New Year Festival. She loses her slipper at the festival and when the King finds it he traces it back to her and falls in love.
Over in the Philippines there is a story of Maria who wins the heart of the prince at a party and – again - has to overcome the cruelty of her stepmother and sisters.
The Vietnamese version - Tấm Cám –is a little darker. Tam is bullied by her stepmother and sister, the magic fish from the Chinese tale reappears and the bones protect Tam and lead her to the King’s heart. However, Tam ends up boiling her stepsister alive and then tricks her stepmother into eating her.
French writer Charles Perrault laid the foundations for fairy tales from existing folk tales including Cinderella. The story first appeared on stage in the beginning of the 19th Century as part of the New Grand Allegorical Pantomime Spectacle at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane.
There was also an opera called La Cenerentola based on the Cinderella story which was first performed in 1817. This went on to influence the King's Opera in Covent Garden’s Easter pantomime Harlequin and Cinderella or the Little Glass Slipper. There is also a ballet of Cinderella written by Sergei Prokofiev.
No wonder Cinderella is one of the most popular pantomimes – a worldwide tale. The Coliseum’s version is no different and this year we have a bevy of dames, three to be exact, the stepmother and two evil step sisters (who you’ll be hard pressed to tell apart, they look identical). There’s no cannibalism though, just a great night out.
Kevin Shaw
Artistic Director
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