FULL CENDRILLON (Viardot) Rennes 2026 Apolline Raï-Westphal, Tsanta RatiaLe, Clarisse Dalles, Romie Esteves

Information on the Performance

• Work Title: Cendrillon  
• Composer: Viardot Pauline  
• Libretto: Pauline Viardot    Libretto Text, Libretto Index
• Venue & Opera Company: Opera de Rennes  
• Recorded: January 1, 2026
• Type: Staged Opera Live
• Singers: Apolline Raï-Westphal, Tsanta RatiaLe, Clarisse Dalles, Romie Esteves, Olivier Naveau, Lila Dufy, Benoît Rameau
• Conductor: Bianca Chillemi   
• Orchestra: Instrumental Ensemble  
• Stage Director: David Lescot   
• Stage Designer: Alwyne de Dardel  
• Costume Designer: Mariane Delayre  
• Lighting Designer: Matthieu Durbec  

Information about the Recording

• Published by: Opera de Rennes  
• Date Published: 2026  
• Format: Broadcast
• Quality Video: 4 Audio:4
• Subtitles: nosubs  

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ON THIS PERFORMANCE

Live broadcast January 1, 2026 16:00 CET on TVR

PROGRAM LEAFLET

Cinderella is a three- act chamber operetta with dialogue , composed by Pauline Viardot and adapted from the fairy tale of Cinderella . The work, with a cast of seven people and a pianist , premiered in Viardot’s Parisian salon on April 23, 1904, when she was eighty-three years old, and was published later that year. It also draws inspiration from Nicholay Chekhov ‘s short play The Snow Queen , adapted from the Andersen fairy tale . The date of composition is unknown, but estimated to be after 1883, the year of the death of Viardot’s friend (and possibly lover) Ivan Turgenev , as he did not write the libretto . It is described as “a retelling of the story of Cinderella with a Gallic spirit, anItalianate bel canto and a strangeness of his own [Viardot’s] own” .

The plot remains faithful to Perrault ‘s original fairy tale , but adopts a lighter approach than the other operatic adaptations by Massenet , Rossini , and Isouard . The wicked stepmother is replaced by a clumsy and bewildered stepfather, and the fairy godmother (La Fée), a guest at the party, sings to entertain the guests. This opera, in its complete performance, lasts just over an hour.

SYNOPSIS
The scene is set in France, at the beginning of the twentieth century.

Act I
This opera presents an alternate reality, where royalty exists at the beginning of the twentieth century. Marie (Cinderella) lives with her father, the Baron de Pictordu, a minor nobleman, where she works as a servant. The opera opens with a scene where Marie sings a folk song ( Once Upon a Time There Was a Prince ) about a prince who only wants to marry a princess and therefore cannot find a suitable bride. A beggar comes asking for money and food (this is the prince in disguise, searching for a wife). Marie goes to ask her sisters for money; she gets nothing, but gives the beggar the few coins she has. Armelinde and Maguelonne then enter the drawing room to chase the beggar away ( We Are Besieged ). Marie responds by asking who would clean the house and look after the family if she had to leave ( If I didn’t come, who would sweep it? ), declaring that she should at least be able to sing her song, which she resumes singing before being interrupted by another knock at the door, again by the Prince, this time disguised as his valet, Barigoule, with an invitation to a ball that evening. The sisters accept and go to get ready ( I shall be charming ).

Marie thinks of the Valet, whom she describes as having “such a distinct charm,” while Pictordu wakes up in his dressing gown. Marie tries to greet him, calling him “papa,” but he brushes her off, calling her “child.” The sisters call Marie. Meanwhile, the Baron remarks that he isn’t feeling well: he saw a van that reminded him of the time before he was a baron, when he worked as a greengrocer (” Yesterday I saw a huge car driving by “); he also mentions a prison sentence 20 years earlier, a former love, Gothon, and says, “Vive la France!” The sisters return after the Baron’s aria, inform him of the invitation to the ball, and encourage him to prepare (a reprise of ” Je serai charmant “). Maguelonne teases Marie because she won’t be able to attend the ball; Marie replies that she only wants to be loved by her family ( “Dear Sisters “).

After the Baron, Maguelonne, and Armalinde leave, Marie resumes her song, lamenting how much she longs to see the Valet again, thus attracting the attention of her fairy godmother (the Fairy), who arrives to send Marie to the ball (” I come to return you to hope “). The adaptation being quite faithful to the original tale, the Fairy transforms a pumpkin into a carriage , mice into horses, lizards into footmen, and a rat into a coachman. Marie’s godmother reminds her to return at midnight so the spell doesn’t break, while also giving her slippers (in this adaptation, their material is not specified) and a magic veil that will transform her rags into a beautiful dress. The Fairy sends her goddaughter to the ball before going herself.

Act II
Back at the palace, the Prince and Barigoule once again switched roles for the evening, and Barigoule sang of his joy at being the Prince ( Since I am now a Prince ). The Pictordu family (without Marie) then arrived and introduced themselves to Barigoule. While Barigoule tried to chase away Maguelonne and Armalinde, the Prince noticed that another woman was to be formally presented. The crowd was bewildered by her beauty ( Who is this beautiful stranger? ) before the Prince realized that she was the woman he had fallen in love with when he was disguised as a beggar. Marie recognized him as well. The Fairy then sang a song. The score specifies that it can be any song chosen by the singer or the director: it is omitted in some performances, while in others vocal arrangements of Chopin ‘s Mazurkas by Viardot are sung, in particular La Fête (The Festival), which deals with a village preparing for a ball [ 5 ] . After the aria of La Fée, Barigoule leads the ladies in a dance, to which the crowd requests a minuet. After the ball, the entire crowd leaves for the buffet, while Marie and the Prince spend a moment alone ( It’s me, don’t be afraid! ). At the end of the duet, they kiss before Marie realizes that midnight has come and abruptly leaves, leaving behind a slipper, while the guests sing a lively song ( The beautiful girl, you who sell roses ).

Act III
Baron Pictordu wakes up in his house, declaring that the Prince (actually, the man he mistook for the Prince) resembled someone he once knew. Barigoule arrives with the same impression and reveals his true identity: he used to work with Pictordu when he was a vegetable merchant. They reminisce about their past work and their shared love, Gothon ( Your Highness does me the honor ). Barigoule reports that the Prince is looking for the lady from the ball who left her slipper, so he can marry her. The sisters, hearing this, are excited ( What a funny adventure !). Barigoule hears the Prince’s royal march in the distance, and he arrives with his footman ( Silence! ). The Prince, in his true identity, thanks the ladies for responding to his summons and orders Barigoule to try the slipper on each of them. Since the slipper didn’t fit any of the sisters, the Prince concluded that the mysterious lady didn’t live in that house, but Barigoule remembered that three ladies lived in Pictordu’s house. The Prince questioned Amalinde and Maguelonne about this, and they revealed that the third was in the kitchen. The Prince ordered Barigoule to find the other sister and try the slipper on her. The slipper fit Marie. The Prince immediately asked Marie to marry him, and her family asked her to forgive them for the way they had treated her. The Fairy returned to offer her best wishes to the newlyweds, urging them to be happy (” I come for the last time “) while the crowd sang about how joyful and full of love the new couple was (“Finale: Of their happiness “). The curtain closed on Marie and the Prince embracing, about to live happily ever after.

Quoted from Wikipedia

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