Musical: Once Upon a One More Time [SPOILERS]

Image found here

As soon as I learned there was such a thing as a musical based on Britney Spears' songs, I knew I HAD to get tickets. I immediately emailed my friends to see who wanted to go with me, and three of them jumped at the chance. We were going to have so much fun at this show!

Wine by the fire? Oh yes!

We met up at Urban Roast for dinner before heading to the Shakespeare Theatre Company's Sidney Harmon Hall. If you haven't tried this restaurant yet, you must go! Each table outside gets its own firepit, so you can enjoy your drinks and meal by the fire (and roast s'mores!). It was a Wednesday, so the house wines were half off. $4 glasses of wine? Sign me up! And their empanadas are so good. I get them every time I go. Then after dinner, we walked the few blocks over to the theater. 

When we first walked in, there is a big globe holding a feather (later you learn it's a quill). This quill is the famous one that has written all of the fairy tales, and the "narrator" of the stories keeps it hostage. The whole plot of the play is that the classic princesses (Cinderella, Snow White, Sleeping Beauty, etc.) begin to question their stories, with Cinderella (played by Briga Heelan) taking the lead. Why is the story always the same, with the Prince saving the day? Why don't the princesses have any autonomy in their own tales? The musical was written by Jon Hartmere; he was an elementary school teacher at one point, so he was familiar with many of the fairy tales, and he wondered what we were teaching our children, especially little girls, about their place in the world with these traditional tales.

The princesses! Screen shot from here.

The princesses have a "scroll club," where they read when they aren't called to "the set" to perform when their own stories are being read. Image found here.

While asking if there could be "more," Cinderella (or Cin/Cindy, as she's called) meets the Original Fairy Godmother (or the "notorious OFG," played by Brooke Dillman), who was banished from the fairy tale world for stirring up trouble. The OFG gives Cinderella a copy of Betty Friedan's The Feminine Mystique, and the princess' world is turned upside down. Then she lets all the other princesses know about the book ("a scroll with numbered pages"), and the fairytale world goes crazy. 

We learn that the Fairy Godmother's real name is Elizabeth, nickname Betty. Everything comes full circle! Image found here.

The princesses begin to learn more about their universe and what is wrong with it. They realize that Prince Charming (Justin Guarini, from American Idol!) is cheating on all of them, and even Rapunzel (played by Wonu Ogunfowora) sees that there is a set of stairs she can climb to leave her tower! The princesses go on strike and start start popping up in each other's stories, which messes up the stories when the narrator (played by Michael McGrath) is trying to read to children. Cinderella even meets the little girl who is reading the book (Adrianna Weir, so cute!), and they start reading The Little Mermaid together. When the mermaid loses her voice, the little girl says something like, "I don't like that part," and it was just gut-wrenching; none of us like when a woman must lose her voice for a man! The narrator tries to banish all of the princesses, but Cinderella saves them all. Female empowerment wins!

Even the evil stepmother (Emily Skinner) and the stepsisters (Tess Soltau and MiMi Scardulla) get their hands on the book. Image found here.

There are so many things I loved about this show. First of all, it combines Britney Spears, princesses, and feminism. Um, yas queen! That is everything. And the music was phenomenal. So many of the actors had great voices, especially Aisha Jackson (Snow White) and Morgan Weed (the Princess and the Pea). I loved recognizing each of the songs, but I also liked how the production changed some of the words to fit this particular story. I couldn't tell you which was my favorite song! I also appreciated how inclusive the show was. There were actors from many different races and backgrounds, and the story even portrayed one of the other princes as a gay man who falls in love with Clumsy the dwarf (Raymond J. Lee). There was a chat with some of the cast members after the show, and they recognized the diversity of the cast, but also felt that everyone was chosen for their roles because they were the best fit. It sounds like the whole cast really bonded during COVID and have formed their own little quarantine family. This show was supposed to open in Chicago in the spring of 2020 (which of course didn't happen), so this December in DC is really their first true go at this performance!

While Prince Charming and Cinderella make a beautiful couple, the script has switched! Image found here.

I wish there were videos that I could share with the singing and the dancing, but they aren't available yet for this brand new show!

Want to learn more? Read this excellent piece from The Washingtonian. Want to see the show for yourself? Tickets are still available for performances through January 9! Buy your tickets here.