Review: CINDERELLA: A HOLIDAY MUSICAL at The Growing Stage Dazzles

Gather your princes and princesses and head over to The Growing Stage, The Children's Theatre of New Jersey. Cinderella: A Holiday Musical is being performed through Sunday, December 17th. It features wonderful direction by the Theatre's Director of Educational Programming, Lori B. Lawrence, musical direction by Stephen Fox, and choreography by Jillian Petrie. Originally produced in 2003 at Emerald City Theatre in Chicago, the show has a book and lyrics by Alyn Cardarelli with music by Steve Goers. We attended a school matinee with students of all ages accompanied by their chaperones and teachers. The entire audience was entertained and delighted.

In the story, Prince Jason's Royal Winter Ball is scheduled and anticipation in the kingdom is building. It is an opportunity for the prince to find a future wife, something that his valet, Wesley doesn't look forward to. While Cinderella dreams of attending the ball, she obediently does chores for her wicked stepmother and her nasty stepsisters, Temperance and Grace. When Silverbird is transformed into the Godmother, real magic happens and Cinderella travels to the Winter Ball with her footman Ratford in a majestic coach, wearing a beautiful dress. But the magic will only last until midnight. Romance is in the air and Prince Jason is completely charmed by Cinderella but she suddenly leaves the ball when the clock chimes twelve. The prince becomes desperate to find her using only her shoe that was left behind. Cinderella: A Holiday Musical has some audience participation, clever twists and humorous touches that make the classic tale even more enjoyable.

The Growing Stage has assembled the ideal company for their holiday show. Not only does the troupe bring the enchanting tale to life but they also perform the musical numbers to perfection. The cast includes, Ally Borgstrom as the beautiful Cinderella; Brad Baron as the charming Prince Jason; Dennis Connors as the bombastic valet Wesley; Adrienne Reuss as the magical Silverbird/Godmother; Davis Cameron Lemley as the quirky Rat/Ratford; Erin Franson as the domineering Stepmother; Allie Ambriano as the anxious stepsister, Temperance; and Nikole Rizzo as the overeager stepsister, Grace. Audience members will enjoy meeting this accomplished group of actors after the curtain call and taking photographs with them.

You'll love the song and dance numbers. Some of our favorites include "Responsibility" by Prince Jason and Wesley; "Magical Me" by Cinderella, Godmother and Ratford; "As I Dance With You" by Prince Jason and Cinderella; and "The Prince Has Got it Bad" by Temperence, Grace, Stepmother and Cinderella.

The Creative team has done a great job of bringing the show to stage with scenic design, painting, puppet design and construction by Perry Arthur Kroeger; costume coordination by Lori Lawrence; lighting design by S.L Fredericks. The Stage Manager is Liz Raymond; Assistant Stage Manager is Nikole Rizzo; Light Board Operator is Angela Kovacs; Sound Board Operator is Ally Takayama. The costumes are provided by Scaramouche LLC

The Growing Stage's theme for the season "Dare to Dream" is wonderfully realized in this Cinderella: A Holiday Musical. Be charmed this dazzling holiday production and see it while it is being performed on the Netcong stage.

Cinderella: A Holiday Musical will be performed at The Growing Stage, The Children's Theatre of New Jersey from November 24th through December 17th. The theatre is located in the Historic Palace Theatre on Route 183 in Netcong. Performances are Friday evenings at 7:30 PM, Saturday and Sunday matinees at 4:00 PM. The Growing Stage brings back FUN-tastic Fridays with all tickets $15. Saturday and Sunday tickets are $25 for adults, $20 for seniors and $15 for children. Also, Season Ticket Packages and Group rates are available. To purchase tickets, visit http://www.growingstage.com/ or contact the Box Office at (973) 347-4946.

Photo Credit: Jerry Dalia

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