ROSSINI AND CINDERELLA

At the age of twenty-five, Rossini had a deadline of December 26, 1816, for a new opera for Rome, but by December 23, there was still no libretto. Thus, on that cold winter evening, there was a meeting between Rossini, the librettist Ferretti, and the impresario Cartoni. Many years later Ferretti wrote an account of that meeting, an account which distance and time may have exaggerated. As they drank tea, he proposed over twenty subjects, but all were rejected as too serious, too complicated, too expensive, or not suitable for the cast which had already been hired! The opera was to be presented during Carnival so it had to be a comedy. Rossini was already in bed when Ferretti murmured "Cinderella". This roused Rossini who asked, "Would you have the courage to write me a Cinderella?" Ferretti responded, "Would you have the courage to set it to music?" Rossini asked when he could have an outline, and Ferretti told him, if he went without sleep, by the next morning. The composer said, "Good night", and immediately fell asleep. Ferretti and Cartoni agreed on the terms, the librettist went home to work, switched from tea to strong coffee, and had the promised outline by the next morning, Christmas Eve. Twenty-two days later the libretto was finished, and Rossini wrote the music in only twenty-four days. The opera premièred on January 25, 1817, just over one month from its initial conception. In that month not only were the words and music written, but the parts for the singers and instrumentalists were ready, and the parts learned by memory, truly an outstanding feat! Because of the press of time, the secco recitative and two arias (now usually cut) were composed by Luca Agolini.

Although the story was more like the 1697 version by Perrault than of those of the brothers Grimm and others, much of the text and some story details were taken from Charles-Guillaume Etienne's 1810 libretto for Cendrillon (Cinderella) by Nicolò Isouard, an opéra comique with spoken dialogue, and from Felice Romani's 1814 libretto for Pavesi's Agatina o La virtù premiata (Agatina or Virtue Rewarded). The characters of Dandini and Alidoro were introduced in the latter, and the slipper was replaced by a rose. Although such borrowing of texts was common at the time, Ferretti was accused of plagiarism.

Neither of the previous operas used the magical effects of the better known story. In addition, Ferretti wrote a preface defending his changes as follows:

If Cinderella does not appear in the company of a wizard who works fantastic miracles or a talking cat, and does not lose a slipper at the ball (but instead gives away a bracelet), this ought not to be considered as a crime of disrespect, but rather a necessity on the stage of the Teatro Valle, and an act of respect to the delicacy of Roman taste, which does not tolerate on the stage what is diverting in a fairy tale told by the fireside.

At that time, fairy tales were thought to be only for little children, not for an opera audience. In particular, he decided that the traditional slipper had to be changed to a bracelet. The censors would never have allowed the heroine's ankle to be seen when she tried on the slipper!

All were nervous on the opening night. The singers were exhausted and in poor voice — they even had to rehearse during intermissions — and the opera was received very rudely. However, Rossini was optimistic saying, "Fools! Before Carnival ends, everyone will be enamored of it ... within two years it will please in France and be considered a marvel in England. It will be fought over by impresarios, and even more by prime donne". He was essentially correct. La Cenerentola was performed twenty times by mid-February and reached London in 1820. La Cenerentola was first performed in New York in 1825 with the seventeen year old Maria Malibran as Angelina.

This was Rossini's twentieth opera and his last comic opera. Sometime later he authorized another version Cinderella or The Fairy and the Little Glass Slipper, for Covent Garden in England, which was closer to Perrault's version. The British were more tolerant of fairy tales than Ferretti's Romans.

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Revised 2005
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