The long march by the Left through all of the institutions of The West has been an ongoing project of destruction for well-over one hundred years now, so the following should not surprise you.
But it disturbed me, or perhaps it was just being confronted expectantly with how low the Left is willing to sink.
There I was yesterday reading that day’s New York Post when I came upon a review of the new Broadway production of Roger And Hammerstein’s Cinderella by Post Theater Critic Elisabeth Vinventelli. This musical holds a special place in my heart because it was the first one I had ever seen. It was written by R&H specifically for television in the late 1950′s and was remade in 1965 — that’s the version* I saw somewhere between the ages of four and eight. This version starred a young and very pretty Lesley Ann Warren and she became my first young love [Miss Jane from Romper Room was my first gal, but she was an adult].
Ah, innocence!…something that was short-lived for me because it was not long after this that I fell for one of The Golddiggers [ah! Paula Cinko]. Miss Warren was, for me, the model of The Girl Next Door — a sweet and tender angel. I’m sure I’m not the only man of my age group who recalls this dove with pleasant and innocent memories.
Which is one reason this new production makes me angry, for it robs the young lads who will see it of this vision of purity and loveliness, and deprives both girls and boys of the joy of a wonderful fairy tale.
Director Mark Brokaw did stick to some tried-and-true tricks. For starters, he assembled a cast of stage pros, not pop or screen stars. Led by the lovely Laura Osnes (“Bonnie & Clyde”) in the title role and Tony-winning Victoria Clark (“The Light in the Piazza”) as the fairy godmother, they are finely attuned to the music.
This almost makes up for the fact that like its heroine, who spends half her time as a modest country girl and half as a glamour-puss, this “Cinderella” waffles between conflicting tones: full-on romantic fantasy for the kiddie-princess set and a campy romp. [BOB: Warning sign right there that this production is going to have a postmodern flaavor to it]
The last bears the unmistakable stamp of Douglas Carter Beane, the wit responsible for the books of “Xanadu” and “Sister Act,” as well as his own hit comedy “The Little Dog Laughed.”
His Cinderella — now just plain Ella — is a spunky girl who doesn’t seem cowed by her stepmother, Madame (Harriet Harris, wonderfully tart), and stepsisters, Charlotte (the scene-stealing Ann Harada) and Gabrielle (Marla Mindelle). The latter are more goofy than mean, anyway.
As for the godmother, Marie, she’s a kind of bag lady of the woods: Or, as Ella describes her, “sweet and delicate, but nuts.”
The Prince, renamed Topher (Santino Fontana), has become a well-meaning college grad oblivious to his kingdom’s lack of freedom — a situation that infuriates the lefty activist Jean-Michel (Greg Hildreth).
Playing fast and very loose with the traditional story, Beane also injected many of his trademark quips.
“Why is there a pumpkin on the table?” Madame snaps at Ella. “It makes no design sense.”
The kids in the audience may not be swayed by this stuff, or by the clunky plot about the quest for democracy — a bore for older folks, too.
Isn’t that just lovely.
The Left has managed to destroy another innocent experience for our children.
There should be a special place in Hell for bastardous cretins who do this kind of thing.
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*Sadly, the DVD of this version is only available
starting at $199 per copy.
