Meet Cinderella and the Prince

How does the central love story unfold in this version of the Cinderella tale?

Alina Cojocaru in Christopher Wheeldon's Cinderella in-the-roundEnglish National Ballet

Cinderella

Our heroine is a little more feisty in Christopher Wheeldon's version of the classic fairytale. 

Cinderella retains all of the kindness of a traditional telling of the story, but she is rather more defiant, and doesn't take her stepmother's bullying lying down!

She is spirited and determined, and cherishes the memory of her parents. 

Cinderella encourages the Prince to stand up for what he wants whilst also facing his responsibilities as the future King.

Cinderella: Ballroom pas de deux (extract)English National Ballet

Cinderella and the Prince fall in love at the royal ball.

Jeffrey Cirio and Isaac Hernandez in Cinderella in-the-roundEnglish National Ballet

Prince Guillaume

In this reimagining of Cinderella, we get more backstory than usual when it comes to the Prince (here in red, with his friend Benjamin in blue).

We first meet Prince Guillaume as a boy, playing boyish pranks on people at the palace with his best friend, the valet's son Benjamin.

As young men they are as close and irrepressible as ever, although the Prince is now under pressure from his well-meaning parents to marry and secure the future of his kingdom. 

Guillaume is uneasy about becoming King one day and doesn't take his responsibilities very seriously until Cinderella encourages him to rise to the challenge. 

Cinderella: Prince Guillaume and Benjamin (extract)English National Ballet

Prince Guillaume and Benjamin are a mischievous pair.

Alina Cojocaru, Katja Khaniukova, Emma Hawes in Cinderella in-the-roundEnglish National Ballet

Stepsisters Edwina and Clementine

The stepsisters in this production are not your typical 'ugly stepsisters'. Christopher Wheeldon describes them as 'perhaps uglier of spirit [rather] than physically ugly'. 

Stepsister Edwina (in pink) is the older, more glamorous and nastier of the two. Flirtatious, ambitious like her mother, and cruel to Cinderella, she is not particularly nice to her younger sister Clementine either. 

Stepsister Clementine (in purple) is goofier, more awkward, and kinder to Cinderella. She falls for the Prince's friend Benjamin, and at the end of the ballet is united with him. 

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