Directors Katy Weir and Jake Smith think it is time to row back from the panto excess associated with Cinderella, so they have returned to the 2011 version by Sally Cookson and Adam Peck. This leans into the more austere Brothers Grimm telling of the tale, cuts out the Fairy Godmother and plays down the narcissism of Ella’s new siblings. The hard-done-by protagonist does magically receive a fancy frock, but she makes it to the ball under her own steam without a pumpkin or a mouse in sight.
Her hasty departure from the palace is not to do with the time but her embarrassment at failing to spot a prince when she sees one.
