Short Summary
Prince Ramiro is on the lookout for a bride. To avoid being loved for the sake of his money and title, he swaps roles with his servant Dandini.
When he meets Cenerentola, who is tyrannized and oppressed by her half-sisters and stepfather, he falls in love with her - and she with him. The two sisters, on the other hand, try to win Dandini, whom they believe to be the prince. The confusion is resolved and in the end, Cenerentola and Ramiro's happiness is perfect. And even when Fürs
La Cenerentola
Storyline
Don Magnifico, his two daughters Clorinda and Tisbe and his stepdaughter Angelina (called Cenerentola) live together in a run-down household.
While the two daughters have nothing but clothes and entertainment on their minds, Cenerentola has to take care of the housework and is tyrannized by her half-sisters. Even her song about the king's son, who chooses the bride with a good heart out of three potential brides, is interrupted by Clorinda and Tisbe.
Alidoro, the prince's tutor disguised as a beggar, appears and asks for alms. Only Cenerentola takes pity on him. Then courtiers announce the arrival of Prince Ramiro, who is looking for a bride. For Clorinda and Tisbe there is now no stopping them: they excitedly rush Cenerentola back and forth so that they can dress up quickly. The general commotion wakes Don Magnifico from a wondrous dream that seems to promise him future happiness: as a flying donkey, sitting on a church spire, he hears the solemn ringing of bells.
In the midst of the preparations, Prince Ramiro appears incognito, having swapped roles with his servant Dandini in order to discover the true character of the marriage candidates. The prince and Cenerentola fall instantly in love, while Dandini is wooed by Clorinda and Tisbe. Although Don Magnifico forbids Cenerentola to accept the general invitation to the castle under threat of violence, she still manages to attend the party in an elegant ballroom with the help of Alidoro - the other guests do not recognize the elegant lady as Angelina despite her striking resemblance to her.
Don Magnifico, Clorinda and Tisbe hold a family council: the appearance of the rival has worried the father.
What if it turns out that he has squandered his stepdaughter's inheritance? Ramiro overhears Cenerentola confessing to Dandini that she loves his "servant". When he happily proposes to her, she makes one condition: He must first find out who she really is. She gives him one of her two bracelets and tells him to look for her.
He should recognize her by the other bracelet that she will wear in her familiar surroundings. If he still loves her, she will marry him. Ramiro immediately gives the order to search for the lover who has rushed away. The disguise game comes to an end, Dandini is now a valet again and Don Magnifico, who has been promised many things by Dandini, laments the fall from his dream of social advancement and financial rehabilitation.
Returning home from the feast, Cenerentola dreams again of the king's son, who chooses his wife according to the inclination of his heart. A thunderstorm comes up and brings Ramiro's car to a halt just outside Don Magnifico's house. Thanks to the bracelet, the prince recognizes his beloved, who in turn is now informed of his true identity. The couple's happiness is perfect. And even as a princess, Cenerentola does not lose her kindness and forgives her relatives.
Director Sven-Eric Bechtolf has relocated the action of the opera to a fictitious dwarf state on the Mediterranean called San Sogno and sets the story in the depths of the 1950s. He creates a colorful and somewhat quirky world in which the somewhat eccentric young prince Don Ramiro, who collects expensive cars, reigns supreme.
On his 24th birthday, February 29, 1816, Gioachino Rossini signed the contract to compose a new opera. Less than a year later, the work in question - La Cenerentola - was premiered at the Teatro Valle in Rome. As with Il Barbiere di Siviglia a few months earlier, the success with the public was not immediate at the premiere, but somewhat delayed, but lasting. And to this day, this buffo opera based on the well-known Cinderella fairy tale continues to captivate audiences with its perfect balance of musical genre painting, characterization, perfect cantilenas, rich melodies, effective ensembles and buffonesque situations.
