‘A classical fairytale with Converse tennis shoes’: Spokane Children’s Theatre presents ‘Stepsisters’

The glass slipper, the evil stepmother, the happily ever after – we’re all familiar with the story of Cinderella.

After her father’s death, Cinderella must live with her evil stepmother and stepsisters and is forced to do all of the housework alone. Some time later, the King plans a royal ball and invites all eligible women to attend with the hopes of finding his son, Prince Charming, a wife.

Cinderella’s stepmother forbids her to attend, but with her Fairy Godmother’s help, Cinderella makes it to the ball and quickly falls for the prince. The Fairy Godmother’s magic wears off at midnight, however, so Cinderella has to run away before she can tell the prince her name.

She leaves one of her glass slippers behind, leading an equally smitten Prince Charming to visit every woman in the land until he finds the one who he danced with at the ball.

This version was made popular by the 1950 Disney film, though the Brothers Grimm tell a different, darker tale.

Also telling a different tale are Beth and Drew, Cinderella’s stepsisters, in the musical “Stepsisters.” Often pushed to the wings while Cinderella takes centerstage, “Stepsisters” gives the pair a chance to tell the story as they see it.

The show starts as Drew (Madison McGivern) and Beth (Susanna Nelson) are locked in a dungeon for conspiring against the king (Michael Sandner) and queen (Sarah Bibby). There, they are forced to tell the other prisoners what really happened with Ella (Aster Davis).

The three are best of friends, it turns out, and Harrison (Oliver Donahoe), the prince, isn’t as great with the ladies as previously depicted. Then there’s the matter of their mother’s dating history and the untimely deaths of husband after husband. And is wandering the kingdom with a glass slipper really the best way to find a bride?

Beth and Drew work to play matchmaker for Ella while outwitting their conniving mother all before the jailer (JoAnne Emery) hands down their punishment.

“Stepsisters” also features Tracey Hirt, Nicholas Witmer, Esther Collin, Kaya Koch, Sienna Miller-Thomas, Rhonda Eirls, Madison Sperry, Mia Sims, Raya Bibby, Emmeline Hirt, Cadence O’Bryan, Evalyn Matousek, Lilli Watson, Bailey Quicke, Joshua Kerr, Jessey Porritt, Lauren Jensen, Karina Rushing, Emerson Hargrove, Mahlani Sengchanthalangsy, Aliyah Redburn, Dimana Sophia, Parker Sandner, Piper Sandner, Ellie Eddy, Sage Paul-Tillery, Ramona Murphy, Evelyn Jarvis, Penelope Donahoe and Juliet Sajovic.

“Stepsisters” features a book by Flip Kobler and Cindy Marcus, music by Dennis Poore and lyrics by Kobler. The show is directed by Craig Hirt and runs Friday through March 16 at Spokane Children’s Theatre.

Even though “Stepsisters” puts Beth and Drew front and center, Hirt revisited a few takes on “Cinderella,” including the Brothers Grimm and Disney versions, plus his time as Sebastian in Spokane Children’s Theatre’s production of “Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Cinderella” in 2022, to better recognize the differences between those stories and the one Beth and Drew tell.

“There are a few plot holes that get figured out,” he said. “They point out that that’s a really weak part of the story that nobody recognizes Cinderella at the ball because she’s wearing a dress.”

With so many versions of these fairytale characters to pull inspiration from, Hirt asked each performer to write a biography of their character to help them feel more real, not straight out of a story, and understand what their story is.

Since “Stepsisters” is a comedy, Hirt didn’t want the biographies to get too dark, and they couldn’t contradict what was in the script.

“It’s not something I collect,” he said. “It’s something that they use as a tool to make their character choices.”

As can be expected, the costumes also help performers bring their characters to life. Hirt describes “Stepsisters” as “a classical fairytale with Converse tennis shoes.” It matches the farcical nature of the show as well as some of the more modern cultural references.

“People have asked ‘Hey, can I get my nails done?’ or ‘Can I dye my hair pink?’ ” he said. “I would normally say ‘No, you can’t do that.’ And I’m like ‘Yeah, what the heck. Go for it.’ ”

Adding yet another element to their production of “Stepsisters,” Hirt and the Spokane Children’s Theatre team are making audience participation part of the show. This isn’t standard for “Stepsisters,” but Executive Director Tanya Brownlee was looking for a script that would lend itself to audience participation and thought this show would be the perfect fit.

The Brothers Grimm (played by Eddy and Paul-Tillery) and their sister (played by Murphy) will encourage the audience to boo when the villain appears on stage, clap when one character – who always says their name with an exclamation point – says their name and “awe” during tender moments.

Now working on his 34th show at Spokane Children’s Theatre, whether onstage or behind the scenes, Hirt is no stranger to the theater’s audiences, who can get appropriately rowdy even without encouragement.

It’s something he noticed while playing Teddy Roosevelt and the stage manager in “Newsies” in October and it’s something he’s looking forward to with “Stepsisters.”

“I’m used to audiences that can be a little loud,” he said. “It’s fun. We like it when they’re interacting.”