Cinderella Abstraction: Libretto

Roman Mykyta, Choreographer

Photos by John Maloney

On Thursday, February 16, 2017

Pianist Sarah Barham

presented her

Senior Recital

for the

University of Maryland

School of Music

at the

Clarice Gildenhorn Recital Hall

The performance included an artistic collaboration between:

  Sarah Barham, Pianist

  Pablo Salazar, Composer

  Roman Mykyta, Choreographer

to present excerpts from the Piano Suite, Op. 102, and Orchestral Score, Op. 35 from Sergei Prokofiev’s Cinderella.

The Cinderella story is timeless, reaching back through history to the Greek myth of Cupid and Psyche, which is notably expounded on by author C.S. Lewis in his book Till We Have Faces.

It is this retelling that inspired the stylistically abstract choreography for this collaboration.

As the story opens,

Cinderella performs

a type of dance-monologue

that describes her goodness

despite her long-suffering.

Out of this blossoms her dream, in which her aspirations of goodness are answered by the dream of loving and being loved.

The dream dissolves and Cinderella is brought back to reality.

In the next scene, as an abstraction of a fairy god-mother, who in reality is a symbol of Providence at work in our lives, Cinderella sees a vision of what she can become, and gains the confidence to go to the ball where love is waiting.

The scene transitions to thePrince himself, who while noble and good-natured is

reserved about love.

When he imagines a potential relationship, he sees a superficial woman (an abstraction of the step-sisters) taking

advantage of him for his status.

As a result, he hides his identity behind a mask, unwilling to be vulnerable in a relationship. 

As the scene transitions to the ball, Cinderella arrives in disguise, also wearing a mask. Despite their hidden identities, the Cinderella and the Prince become vulnerable and fall in love.

The Prince is ready to remove his mask and reveal his true, authentic self, but Cinderella struggles with being vulnerable.

She comes to understands that it is the only way for the relationship to work. She abandons her mask and the two surrender themselves to one other in the relationship.

Arrangement by Pablo Salazar

Choreography by Roman Mykyta

Photography by John Maloney

MUSICIANS:

Sarah Barham, piano

Su-Young Nam, celesta

Robert Schroyer, marimba

Matt Miller, percussion

Mario Perez, percussion

DANCERS:

* Laura Pimpo, Cinderella

* Roman Mykyta, Prince

* Kaitlin Kimm, Providence (fairy god-mother) and  Temptation (step-sister)

* Dancers appear courtesy of Ballet Theatre of Maryland

L to R: Pablo Salazaar, Kaitlin Kimm, Sarah Barham, Laura Pimpo, Roman Mykyta

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