Cinderella (television) Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Cinderella was produced many years before on television in versions starring Julie Andrews and Lesley Ann Warren, but this new version stars Brandy (Cinderella), Whitney Houston (Fairy Godmother), Whoopi Goldberg (Queen Constantina), Victor Garber (King Maximilian), Bernadette Peters (Stepmother), Jason Alexander (Lionel), Paolo Montalban (Prince), Natalie Desselle (Minerva), Veanne Cox (Calliope). Directed by Robert Iscove. Aired on The Wonderful World of Disney on November 2, 1997. 120 min. Most of the film’s scenes were shot on stages at Sony Pictures Studios (formerly MGM Studios) in Culver City, California. Coincidentally, the Palace set for Cinderella was constructed on the same sound stage where Dorothy followed the yellow brick road to Oz in the famous 1939 MGM film. For the visual design of Cinderella, designers were inspired by the style of Austrian artist, Gustav Klimt, whose curious style was a synthesis of symbolism and art nouveau. To enhance the original musical score, and with permission from The Rodgers and Hammerstein Organization, three songs were added to the musical–”The Sweetest Sounds,” written by Rodgers for the 1962 Broadway musical, No Strings; “Falling in Love with Love,” by Rodgers and Hart for The Boys from Syracuse, and “There’s Music in You,” by Rodgers and Hammerstein for the 1953 MGM film, Main Street to Broadway. Released on video in 1998.
