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# Review: Cinderella @ Birmingham Hippodrome
- URL: https://lichfieldlive.co.uk/review-cinderella-birmingham-hippodrome-2/
- Published: 2012-11-23T08:24:06.000Z
- Updated: 2012-11-23T08:24:06.000Z
- Author: Phil Preece
- Tags: Reviews, What's On, #wp, #wp-post, #Import 2026-07-22 19:24

This is the big one, the Christmas treat many Midlands theatre-goers look forward to all year round and believe me this year it’s the real deal.

Given its title you might reasonably expect David Bintley’s Cinderella to be a posh panto, and in some ways it is, but for its sheer scale and inventiveness it deserves to be seen as much more. This lavishly mounted production rightly goes for sheer seasonal spectacle in the retelling of the much-loved tale but ballet is still its true heart.

The opening scullery scene gives full reign to the bullying that’s at the heart of our sympathy for poor Cinders, movingly played by Elisha Willis. The ugly sisters, one fat (Carole-Anne Millar as Dumpy), one thin, (Samara Downs as Skinny) are the all too familiar from real life greedy whingers who appear to dislike even themselves. BRB’s Assistant Director Marion Tate has the acting skills to make us believe in the single-mindedness of their pushy mother who knows that unloading this unattractive pair onto the marriage market will be an uphill struggle. But this psychological realism quickly gives way to the sumptuous transformation scene with its dancing animals, twinkling corps of ballerina fairies and a magic coach which drew delighted sighs of surprise from the packed house.

The Act Two ballroom scene has dark undertones as evidenced by Prokofiev’s nervy score and echoed by the dark magnificence of the courtiers’ clothes, but the comic spectacle of the Sisters’ attempts to hook the Prince (and as much food as the plump one can neck) lighten things up. Cinderella’s entrance is an elegant and respectful nod to Princess Aurora’s entrance in The Sleeping Beauty however, proving this is no vulgar entertainment.

But it’s the final scene that really had me entranced. Totally redressed and remounted this shimmering “white act” of silvery tulle and tinsel was a glittering marriage celebration calculated to send audiences out on a smiling high as the noble Prince Charming (Iain Mackay on top form) claimed his Princess.

Cinderella runs until December 9, including matinee performances. For tickets call 0844 338 5000 or go online [www.birminghamhippodrome.com](http://www.birminghamhippodrome.com/?ref=lichfieldlive.co.uk).