Classic Fairy Tale Receives Modern Make-Over in UW Ballet

The University of Wyoming Department of Theatre and Dance production of “From the Ashes: A Cinderella Ballet” can be seen Tuesday, Dec. 4-Saturday, Dec. 8, at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday, Dec. 9, at 2 p.m. on the UW Fine Arts main stage.

Tickets cost $14 for the public, $11 for senior citizens and $7 for students. Tickets are available at the Fine Arts and Wyoming Union box offices, and also can be purchased by calling (307) 766-6666 or visiting www.uwyo.edu/finearts.

“This Cinderella is defiant and independent,” says choreographer and director Jennifer Deckert. “I wanted to redefine what a confident young woman is -- she does not need to be demure or restricted to a certain mode of being.”

The ballet follows a young woman who is discerning her true desires in life against a backdrop of societal expectations. Cinderella struggles against her jealous stepmother, spiteful stepsisters and idealized notions of love.

“I pulled from all sorts of sources to reinterpret this story, from the classic story, from my yoga background, from ‘The Feminine Mystique,’ you name it,” says Deckert, assistant professor in the theatre and dance department.

“Cinderella must stand on her own convictions as she strives to find a love deeper than fairy tales,” she says.