Can Andrew Lloyd Webber Modernize Cinderella?

This post was inspired by a reader of my blog who informed me of an upcoming new Cinderella musical by Andrew Lloyd Webber. Modernizing the story of "Cinderella" is more complicated than rebooting a franchise like The Princess Diaries because Cinderella has already been reinvented countless times. Some of these reimaginings are better than others. The most obvious problem with creating a stage musical of "Cinderella" is that the Rodgers and Hammerstein version has evolved into a timeless classic since it was first performed by Julie Andrews on live TV in 1957. The most recent revival of the production added a modern twist by making Cinderella a revolutionary who takes advantage of her close relationship with the prince to help the peasants overcome a housing crisis in their kingdom. Was this element a necessary addition to the story? Not really. Yet, it offered something new to take away from a tale we've already heard hundreds of times. If Andrew Lloyd Webber can bring something new to the story, his version could potentially stand triumphantly alongside the Cinderellas from the Rodgers and Hammerstein classic and Stephen Sondheim's Into the Woods. However, it's a slippery slope, and not just because of the glass slippers.

Like many fans of Broadway and musical theater, I grew up with Andrew Lloyd Webber's most famous shows such as Cats and Phantom of the Opera, so I was curious to see how he would handle such a classic fairy tale that often gets butchered from overexposure. The video interview between Andrew Lloyd Webber, writer Emerald Fennell, and leading lady Carrie Hope Fletcher raised some red flags for me. They discussed how "Cinderella" is a story of transformation and how they wanted to challenge that theme and determine if it's really necessary to change. While it is important to stay true to yourself, I have to say that it is not only necessary to change as we get older but ultimately inevitable. Princesses start out as young and innocent, and it isn't until they transform as a result of their exciting and magical journeys that they reach a point when they are ready to become queen. This applies just as much to "Cinderella" as it does to any other fairy tale, so the prospect of using this production as a sounding board to fight against the core theme of transformation is inherently flawed, and possibly even harmful to younger audiences.

The other misguided statement from the short video interview is that no one questions the fact that Cinderella decided to marry the prince even though she barely knew him. Excuse me? This has been questioned constantly! It started in 1986 with Stephen Sondheim's Into the Woods and its philandering princes and followed up by Disney in 2007 with Enchanted and then 2013 with a little thing called Frozen. This common theory also doesn't take into account the fact that Cinderella was a victim who needed to be with the prince in order to escape a life of abuse. I hope that the interview was a poorly worded attempt to explain the new musical because it sounds as though it's about Cinderella trying to resist an opportunity to be with someone who loves her so that she is able to continue her miserable life of servitude. If that is an accurate depiction, it does not sound like an adaptation that misses the point of the story entirely. Even the brief musical clip that Webber shared on his YouTube channel further insinuates these flawed ideas that he construes as "modern."

"Call me bad Cinderella. I will not say good-bye. I've been leaving (living?) since I met you. I'll forget you."

Carrie Hope Fletcher sings a melody that is strongly reminiscent of Rodgers and Hammerstein's "In My Own Little Corner" in a beautiful vibrato voice. These lyrics sound like the sort of quick fix that Disney used to modernize characters like Princess Jasmine with her newest song "Speechless." Modern women must be so strong that they don't need a man or anyone else to help them get stuff done. Have we reached a point where this applies even to "Cinderella," arguably one of the most romantic fairy tales of all time? If we are living in a world where not even Cinderella can find true love at the ball, I'm not sure it's the type of world that I want to be part of. Then again, the meaning of these lyrics is vastly different based on who they are sung to. If she is singing to the prince about not wanting to say good-bye to her old life and continue to be a slave, that is a sign of Stockholm syndrome that demonstrates she has been brainwashed by her stepmother to the extent that she doesn't even think she can leave, which is a dangerous message to convey. The healthiest interpretation of these lyrics is that she is singing to her stepfamily about forgetting them and not wanting to say good-bye to the prince, As much as I'd like to remain optimistic, the context of the interview leads me to believe that is not the case.

When it comes to "Cinderella," it can be possible to have too much of a good thing. The classic rags to riches story of a girl who just wants to be loved has been reinvented so many times that it is barely even recognizable through a modern lens. The new Andrew Lloyd Webber production is slated to premiere at the Gillian Lynne Theatre in England this October. Those of us living in the United States may not even have an opportunity to see it live unless it does well and comes to Broadway or goes on an international tour. As appealing as it sounds to see an adaptation of "Cinderella" by the same man who created the beloved Phantom of the Opera, this play sounds like it's trying way too hard to modernize a story that never needed to be modernized in the first place. I hope the interview was misleading and that it turns out to be fantastic, but in the meantime, we will always have the breathtakingly beautiful Rodgers and Hammerstein version on with its unforgettable soundtrack.