Cinderella. Ballet in 2 Acts

Ballet in 2 Acts

Cinderella

A Tragic Tale. A dark contemporary Cinderella by Terence Kohler for the Finnish National Ballet, with music by Lera Auerbach — stripped of fairy-tale ornament and reimagined as a psychological family drama.

Premiere 14 Oct
2011
Company Finnish
National Ballet
Choreography Terence
Kohler
Music Lera
Auerbach

Concept

No glass slippers, no pumpkin carriage, no fairy-tale escape. Kohler’s Cinderella becomes a dark adult tale of family violence, transformation, social ritual, and emotional survival.

Work Information

Title
Cinderella — A Tragic Tale
Finnish Title
Tuhkimo — traaginen kertomus
Swedish Title
Askungen — en tragisk berättelse
Premiere
14 October 2011, 19:00, Finnish National Ballet.
Dates
14 | 15 | 19 | 21 | 27 | 29 October • 1 | 3 | 5 November 2011.
Music
Lera Auerbach.
Choreography
Terence Kohler.
Conductor
Luke Dollman.
Orchestra
Orchestra of the Finnish National Opera.
Soloists
Antti Tikkanen, violin solo; Anastasia Injushina, piano.
Running Time
Two intervals; performance ended approximately at 21:10.

Creative Team

Assistant
Sophia Carolina Fernandes — choreographer’s assistant.
Design
Jordi Roig — set and costume design.
Lighting
David Bofarull — lighting design.
Ballet Master
Ingrid Němečková — responsible ballet master.
Ballet Masters
Joseph Kerwin; Tuuli Tuominen-Sandell.
Design Assistant
Annamaria Cattaneo — assistant to the set designer.

Premiere Cast

Cast as listed in the Finnish National Ballet premiere document.

  • Cinderella Eun-Ji Ha Tuhkimo / Askungen.
  • Prince Ilja Bolotov Prinssi / Prinsen.
  • Mother Anastasia Dunets Äiti / Modern.
  • Father Henrik Burman Isä / Fadern.
  • Stepsisters Tiina Myllymäki / Petia Ilieva Sisarpuolet / Styvsystrarna.
  • Stepmother Minna Tervamäki Äitipuoli / Styvmodern.
  • Stylists Antti Keinänen / Frans Valkama Stylistit / Stylisterna.
  • Four Men Jaakko Eerola / Michal Krčmář / Jani Talo / Frans Valkama Neljä miestä / Fyra män.
  • Four Dressers Riina-Kaisa Huovila / Maarika Kärkkäinen / Virve Olsson / Sari Stenholm Neljä pukijaa / Fyra påkläderskor.
  • Nine Women Linda Haakana / Annabelle Hellinckx / Sari Ikonen / Elena Ilyina / Anna Konkari / Maki Nakagawa / Johanna Nuutinen / Anna Sariola / Maria Tamminen Yhdeksän naista / Nio kvinnor.
  • Nine Men Andrea Bena / Evaldas Bielinis / Juntaro Coste / Yusuke Hikichi / Antti Keinänen / Nikolas Koskivirta / Johan Pakkanen / Piergiorgio Regazzo / Aapo Siikala Yhdeksän miestä / Nio män.

Dramatic World

Cinderella — A Tragic Tale is not a decorative fairy-tale ballet. Terence Kohler’s staging removes the usual emblems of enchantment — glass slippers, magic wands, pumpkin carriage — and turns the story toward a darker adult landscape.

The world of the ballet is a spare, disciplined, visually dark environment shaped by Kohler and Jordi Roig. Instead of sentimental transformation, the work reveals a harsh family structure, an atmosphere of social pressure, and a Cinderella whose story belongs closer to psychological drama than to children’s fantasy.

Lera Auerbach’s music replaces the traditional Prokofiev route. Its heavy, dark sonorities form the emotional ground of the ballet: a sound-world of pressure, fracture, memory, and inner endurance.

World Premiere

14 Oct
2011

Finnish National Ballet Premiere

  • Finnish National Ballet
  • Finnish National Opera
  • 19:00
  • Music — Lera Auerbach
  • Choreography — Terence Kohler
  • Conductor — Luke Dollman
  • Set and costumes — Jordi Roig
  • Lighting — David Bofarull
  • Choreographer’s assistant — Sophia Carolina Fernandes
  • Orchestra of the Finnish National Opera
  • Violin solo — Antti Tikkanen
  • Piano — Anastasia Injushina
  • Performance dates — 14, 15, 19, 21, 27, 29 October; 1, 3, 5 November 2011