The art of storytelling, is so vital to humans,
maybe more than ever
during a time of confinement.
I can't travel to gather new stories & world experiences,
but my mind & heart can.
The fairy tale Cinderella came to me recently
via the Metropolitan Opera website.
Cendrillon de Jules Messenet, written in1899.
I sketched while watching it on my computer screen.
I was brought back to magical fairy tales, characters, costumes & settings
that sustained me in childhood.
I am brand new to opera.
What a wonderful way to begin a journey
into a new art form:
An opera for children as well as adults.
As a former teacher I loved exploring the Met's
lesson plan for Cendrillon which led to note taking
in my daily journal
Studying the French language continues
to be a sort of enchantment for me.
Voilà, this opera is in French!! Double, triple enchantment!!
''
Magnificent costumes, music, dance, comedy, tragedy...
And, of course, "Happily ever after."
"Heureux pour toujours".
Goodness & kindness triumph over evil.
Balm for a troubled world!
The story theme of Cinderella is almost 2,000 years old!!
In my own library I found a version of Cendrillon,
based on Charles Perrault's interpretation.
I copied text from it as a French language exercise.
This book is interpreted by Marlene Jobert,
illustrated by Matthieu Blanchin
I saw an interactive exhibit at the Musée de la Civilisation
in Québec in 2012 called Il était une fois, Once upon a time...
Children donned costumes & played fairy tale characters.
I was struck by the similarities of my Cendrillon sketches
to those from my visit to that exhibit.
To visit my blog post of 8 years ago, called
Children's Museum Exhibits & Language Learning,
which featured "Il était une fois,"
Click Here.
(Thank you Leslie for sharing your love and knowledge
of opera!)
