The library, I regret to say, does not have the Leslie Ann Warren version of this. Alas. In fact, no one seems to have a proper recording of this version, either--apparently, it initially aired in colour, but the kinescope we have is in black & white. Maybe I'd like it better in colour--fan though I am of black &
white, most colour productions lose something if you don't see them in colour.
I don't really like Rodgers and Hammerstein, actually. I don't mind The Sound of Music every once in a great while, but I dislike The King and I, and I loathe Oklahoma. (We've got Carousel coming up this week, too.) I like the song the stepsisters get in this, but none of the other songs really do anything for me.
And I can't stand Cinderella's ballgown. Apparently, they made more of a fairy tale princess-y one, but it was too big and heavy to actually perform in. I wish they'd tried for a third; the dress she ends up in is very unappealing, especially in contrast to how lovely Julie Andrews is. And this is young Julie Andrews, too; this is from when she was in My Fair Lady (a far better musical, in my opinion).
This was actually written for television, not just made for it, which may explain why it's so simple. After all, the thing was performed live, which means that complicated stage effects were just one more thing that could go wrong. Besides, there's only so much you can do to jazz up the Cinderella story, of course. Unless you get talking mice, at least.
Oh, and Due South connection--one of the stepsisters is played by Kaye Ballard, who played Old Ray's mom! (She was also on a first-season episode of The Muppet Show.) Too early for the Mountie, though. He wouldn't be born for another two years.
October 25, 2007
