Massenet's Cendrillon (Cinderella) has never gotten a strong foothold in the repertoire, but it's a real charmer that reveals Massenet at his most inventive and highlights his gift as a comic composer. Massenet's music is consistently elegant, and when necessary, goofy in a way that recalls the best of Arthur Sullivan, with some delectable ensembles. The libretto, by Henri Cain, is derived fairly straightforwardly from the Perrault tale, but with the villains' meanness minimized and with a few quirky twists. Massenet's most ...
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Massenet's Cendrillon (Cinderella) has never gotten a strong foothold in the repertoire, but it's a real charmer that reveals Massenet at his most inventive and highlights his gift as a comic composer. Massenet's music is consistently elegant, and when necessary, goofy in a way that recalls the best of Arthur Sullivan, with some delectable ensembles. The libretto, by Henri Cain, is derived fairly straightforwardly from the Perrault tale, but with the villains' meanness minimized and with a few quirky twists. Massenet's most eccentric contribution to the retelling is making Prince Charming a trousers role for a soprano, which must certainly have added to the fantasy-like quality of the opera. In this recording, tenor Nicolai Gedda takes the role of the Prince, in what was probably a decision to make the opera more "realistic." Gedda sings beautifully, but the listener is left wondering how it would have differed if it had been performed according to the composer's intentions. The rest of the cast is...
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