So this weekend was Ella Enchanted at OCT. Nugget was in a cranky mood and said he in no way wanted to go watch a show about princesses. I told him this was an un-princess story and to get his little tushy in the car (and be nice about it). With a frown on his face, he got in the car and buckled up. He even found a pair of headphones in the car and put them on so he wouldn’t have to be tortured with all the princessness. I ignored him and acted as if everything was fine. So it was one of those mornings. Yay.
Ella Enchanted is the story of a princess who is given the gift/curse of obedience. She has to do anything anyone tells her to, which has some obvious down sides. Ella is a likeable young girl who strives to find her independence. She has a an endearing mother, a wicked step family, and a clueless step father who make her plight all the more difficult. All the trappings of a classic fairy tale.
We got there and found our seats to be in the first balcony. We had never had seats there before and they were pretty good! Nugget kept on his cranky pants- and the headphones. But he did subtly lift them up during the good parts and had a list of things he liked once the play was over.
Chicken did a lot of giggling and smiling. The evil step sisters were a hit, and she loved the concept of the play. She was able to draw parallels between Ella and other well known fairy tales. She was even pleased to find the word “obey” on a vocabulary test at school a few days later! Who says theater isn’t educational?
Overall, the talent was fantastic and the staging was beautiful. There were a few parts that could have been cut out and I don’t think any of us would have missed them. But even those parts were pleasant enough.
What it is: sweet, funny, with a positive female lead, and un-princess fairy tale, well produced, and enjoyable.
What it is not: super fast paced, Nugget’s favorite
Would we recommend it: Chicken and I would, Nugget not so much
Adventures with Chicken and Nugget 