'Cinderella' gets retold through three lenses.

Byline: Dorothy Velasco For The Register-Guard

There's a new Cinderella on the block, and she isn't the one your grandmother told you about. Yes, the pretty girl in the glass slippers and the pink fluffy ball gown still is loved by little girls. That sense of style seems to be in their genes, and it would be even if Walt Disney h never ad created the iconic image we know so well.

The new Cinderella is another likeable girl, or girls. There's not just one of them, but rather three different heroines from worldwide folk and literary traditions.

This version, "Cinderella, or, It's Okay to Be Different," is a play for young children presented by the University of Oregon's Mad Duckling Children's Theatre, staged at Amazon Park's pleasant outdoor playground area.

As with all of Mad Duckling's colorful, enthusiastic productions, this one elicits joyful participation from the kids in the audience. When the actors pass out a few animal masks and invite children to join the action onstage, they are eager to do so.

In this show written by Cynthia Mercati and directed by Jennifer Thomas, we first meet an Egyptian Cinderella, played by Bethany Osborne-Koch. She's not merely a girl mistreated by her stepmother and stepsisters but someone who is captured and sold into slavery in ancient Egypt.

In spite of all her hard labor, she proves to be a graceful dancer, and she is rewarded with a pair of golden slippers. A big, mean falcon steals one of them from her and takes it to the Pharaoh, who hears of her qualities and searches for her, leading to a happy ending.

The second Cinderella, played by Annie Rose Favreau, is a member of the Algonquin tribe in Ontario, Canada. She is tormented by her sisters, who call her the rough-faced girl because she bears some scars.

A warrior who has an invisible brother looking for a wife gives all the girls a test. The only one to pass is the rough-faced girl, because she can see with her mind and spirit and not just her eyes.

The third Cinderella story is given an urban setting in modern times because the characters tell us that everyone has a story worth listening to. In the modern story, a girl and her brother are excellent basketball players.

Their sister, called Hey You (Jessie Ryan), lacks talent until two fairies who speak in rap rhymes present her with sparkling basketball shoes. In her new shoes, she is a star on the court.

Andrew Barton and Joshua Lange play all the men's roles. One of them wonders why there's never been a male Cinderella. The other says there was, reminding him about an old movie called "Cinderfella."

As the third version of the story is wrapping up, the actors encourage the spectators to offer their own suggestions for creating a new ending to the tale.

On the day I watched, the kids (with a little guidance from the actors) decided to let the opposing basketball team steal the ball and win the game, but the kids on our heroine's team would receive a million dollars and live happily ever after.

OK, I'll buy that. It's a fairy tale, after all.

At the play area in Amazon Park, the audience sits on the lawn in the shade. No matter how hot the day is, it always seems to be breezy and cool, so bring a sweater just in case.

Refreshments are available nearby.

Dorothy Velasco, a Springfield playwright, reviews theater for The Register-Guard.

Theater review

Cinderella, or, It's Okay to Be Different

When: 11 a.m. Tuesday through Saturday, through July 19

Where: Amazon Park, 2700 Hilyard St.

Tickets: $5 for anyone 2 and older (346-4192)