Cinderella previewRaleigh Little Theatre Preview 24th Edition Of “Cinderella” Has Some New Wrinkles The 24th edition of Raleigh Little Theatre’s gala presentation of CINDERELLA, performed Dec. 7-9 and 13-16 in the A.J. Fletcher Opera Theater in the Progress Energy Center for the Performing Arts in downtown Raleigh, NC, will have some new wrinkles, says long-time RLT artistic director Haskell Fitz-Simons. “There are a good number of new cast members in the show,” notes Fitz-Simons, “and they always bring their own style and whatever. The two helpers [Jackson Bloom and Jason Cooper] have changed this year for the first time in several years. They are quite good, but they’re a little different from what people are used to.” Fitz-Simons says, “We have a new King Darling this year; he is Christopher White. Katherine Anderson, who was our Cunégonde in CANDIDE and Hope Cladwell in URINETOWN, is our Cinderella. We’re delighted to have her. Nick Culpepper is the new Prince. He’s been in the ensemble for several years, and has been elevated to the role of the prince. He and Katherine are a good match. “We’ve got a family in the show,” notes Haskell Fitz-Simons. “Christopher White’s son, Nick, and daughter, Cassy, are in the show. It’s been a while since we’ve had a family involvement. Every now and then, we’ve had parent-child thing, but hardly ever do we have a parent-two child thing. It all happened serendipitously. We didn’t cast them thinking that.” In addition to director Haskell Fitz-Simons, the 2007 creative team for CINDERELLA includes choreographer Missy Dapper, musical director Megan Crossin, assistant to the director Carlie Huberman, technical director Jim Zervas, set designer Bill Rodgers, lighting designer Rick Young, costume designer Vicki Olson, properties mistress Betsy Bates, and stage manager Keith Bugner In last year’s interview with TRIANGLE THEATER REVIEW, director Haskell Fitz-Simons said, “I would be lying if I said I didn’t have to get myself into the mindset to direct CINDERELLA every year. We try to make the show fresh and new every year. We have to fight the dreaded disease of automatic pilot. I think we’re very good at that.” He adds “Over the years, I have developed a series of ensemble-building rehearsals where we don’t work on CINDERELLA, but we work on an ensemble where every company member can feel confident about bringing his or her creative energies to the table.… That’s one of the things that helps me to get jazzed for doing the show every year.… “Everybody thinks all you have to do is dust CINDERELLA off and take it downtown,” claims Fitz-Simons, “but that is so not true of the costume department. I have a knack of picking actors and actresses who are different sizes from the costumes that we have in stock. [In 2006, costume designer] Vicki Olson … had to make six new gentlemen’s court costumes, which are huge tailoring jobs, and two new women’s court costumes, which require even more work. “You cannot wear [an 18th century] costume like that unless you have the appropriate undergarments,” explained Fitz-Simons, “and Vicki has always outfitted the women of the ensemble with period corsets. After a period of time, all those corsets died, so she has had to build all new ones this year. In addition to that, she has to alter all the costumes and make sure they fit the people who are wearing them this year. “So, the costume shop has been abuzz,” Fitz-Simons claimed. “This is the time a year when every sewing machine is going, and all the cutting tables are filled, and the wig tables are piled high. So, there’s lots of stuff going on down there.” Haskell Fitz-Simons added, “The yarn wigs, which are sort of a trademark of the show, have a distinct shelf life. [In 2006], the men’s court wigs were unusable, so we had to make another set, as well as styling all the rest of the wigs and decorating them and bringing them up to snuff. “There’s [also] maintenance of costumes after every performance,” said Fitz-Simons, “and laundering of tights and camisoles and t-shirts. All the undergarments get washed after pretty nearly every show to keep from having to clean the outer garments during the run. The dry cleaning for CINDERELLA is one of our huge budget items every year.” Raleigh Little Theatre presents CINDERELLA Friday, Dec. 7, at 7:30 p.m.; Saturday-Sunday, Dec. 8-9, at 1 and 5 p.m.; Thursday-Friday, Dec. 13-14, at 7:30 p.m.; and Saturday-Sunday, Dec. 15-16, at 1 and 5 p.m. in the A.J. Fletcher Opera Theater in the Progress Energy Center for the Performing Arts, 1 E. South St., Raleigh, North Carolina. $16-$26. 919/821-3111 or http://www.etix.com/ticket/servlet/onlineSearch?action=previousCalendar&venue_id=279&display_month=12&display_year=2007&cobrand=RLT. NOTE: All shows are wheelchair accessible, and there will be assistive listening devices at all performances. RALEIGH LITTLE THEATRE: http://raleighlittletheatre.org/performances/07-08/cinderella24.html. WHAT: The TRIANGLE THEATER REVIEW is a FREE weekly e-mail theatrical newsletter, featuring previews and reviews by Robert W. McDowell and reviews by Alan R. Hall and others. (For brief bios of our critics, see the CVNC biographies page.) Classical Voice of North Carolina, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization and this state's leading performing-arts platform, not only pays our reviewers but also makes continued publication of TTR possible. The online versions of our critics' theater reviews are now listed on the CVNC Reviews page. 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