Cinderella at Runaway Stage

The verdict: It's Cinderella (if you think that's a good thing, I'm sure you'll enjoy the show)


A riddle to begin this review: how are Superman and Cinderella alike?

Any comic book fan can tell you what the fundamental flaw is in the Superman story: that it's impossible to believe that nobody ever realizes that mild mannered Clark Kent is, in fact, the man of steel. I mean, come on, right!? It's not like he's adopted any sort of disguise (and don't get me started on the little curl of hair that drops down his forehead when he's in Superman mode...like that's gonna fool anyone).

Anyway, after watching two tellings of the Cinderella story in the course of one weekend (Into the Woods at Sutter Street and Cinderella at Runaway Stage), it suddenly dawned on me that this story suffers from the same failure of basic logic. So, the Prince attends the ball, dances the night away with Cinderella, falls in love with her, but then doesn't recognize her the next day when he goes around trying to find the maiden who's foot fits the glass slipper? Right, what a dunce!

But, OK, it' a fairy tale. I get it. So on with the review.

Runaway Stage's Cinderella repeats the current conceit of having males play the wicked stepsisters in drag. It's a guaranteed crowd-pleaser, and this show is no exception. Jesse Larrosa and Daryl Clark play the two evil sisters with scene-chomping abandon, and the crowd loved it. I laughed right along with them, although ultimately I wondered why?

One thing is certain about this show: Katie Veale was born to play Cinderella and she was ably complimented by Scott Woodard as her Prince Charming (well, technically, Prince Christopher, but why quibble?). Ms. Veale is a delight - lovely and innocent, able to portray Cinderella's basic goodness but also to show an inner depth that is very attractive. Woodard and Veale make an exquisite couple, and are the clear standouts in the cast. Which takes me back to the original point, about the males-in-drag approach to storytelling. Why bother? Why distract from such an attractive cast with tall, dorky men playing annoyingly cloying women? Obviously, for laughs.

And the audience loved it. So, again, why quibble?

Cinderella is a typically strong RSP offering. The cast, top to bottom, is very good. The resident orchestra really shines. The pacing is brisk and the singing excellent.

And you get to see a couple of large, ugly stepsisters upstaging the story and the lead actors.

So, if you like that kind of thing, by all means, go see it.