Six Cinderella Stories to Manifest Your Own Rags to Riches

For a millenia, the world has fallen in love with tales spun around an abused protagonist forced into the trenches of society. The only way for these tragic heroes to escape their miserable lives is in a life-altering encounter with true love.

Labeled as Cinderella stories, hundreds of iterations of these fables have been found around the globe, representing a variety of cultures and lessons to be learned from this well-known trope.

For Gen Z, these adaptations were engrained into the media they consumed since circle time reading in elementary school, and it hasn’t stopped since.

Whether you’re wandering down memory lane or looking for a new way to experience a classic tale, here’s a list of six Cinderella stories to experience because, as “Cinder” author Marissa Meyer wrote, “Even in the future, the story begins with Once Upon a Time.”

‘Mufaro’s Beautiful Daughters’ — John Steptoe

The most seemingly inconsequential actions often reveal the most about a person’s character, including how one treats a tiny garden snake. 

When the King reveals he plans to take a wife, the eldest of two beautiful sisters hatches a devious plan to ensure she’s his pick.

In this 1987 children’s book based in Zimbabwean culture, John Steptoe guides readers of all ages through understanding that love blossoms from generosity and what we do in service of others, expecting nothing in return.

‘Happily N’Ever After’ (2006)

Have you ever imagined what would happen if fairy tales went off script and villains were given the chance to take the “happily ever after” for themselves? When the balance between good and evil is placed under the watch of the Wizard’s two wacky assistants, readers no longer have to wonder.

Encapsulated in the 3D CGI animation style which reigned in the 2000s, a fractured fable is born. Writers and animators produced witty and comedic scenes underlined with a rebellion against traditional fairytale tropes when a damsel didn’t need to be in distress to find her happily ever after.

‘Cinder’ — Marissa Meyer

In a dystopian future where inhabitants of the Moon have special mind-manipulating powers, Cinderella — named Cinder in this tale — is a sarcastic teenage girl who’s not all human, can fix a droid, has an evil stepmother and backstory filled with details kept secret from her.

Cinder is more than happy to stay in the shadows as long as she has her freedom. But, even simple plans can be thrown off when the disguised prince of the Eastern Commonwealth stops by the mechanic’s stall with a request.

Released in 2011, “Cinder” is the first book in The Lunar Chronicles, a series which introduces readers to a quirky and diverse found family battling the tyrant Lunar Queen as she threatens stability on an Earth already ravaged by a deadly pandemic. 

Meyer develops personable characters who face discord becoming increasingly relatable to the real lives of those watching the story unfold on each page. However, Meyer leaves readers with a guide through her Cinderella character as Cinder, too, must decide what she’s willing to give up to ensure a better future for everyone.

‘Ella Enchanted’ (2004)

Cinderella meets 80s pop-rock in this cheeky film starring Anne Hathaway as Ella, a girl who does everything she’s told, but not because she wants to.

From singing Queen hit “Somebody to Love” in a tavern full of giants to thievery, Ella’s been forced to do whatever someone asks of her since she was a baby, thanks to a fairy’s gift gone horribly wrong.

Based on the eponymous 1997 novel by Gail Carson Levine, Ella must go on an adventure to find the fairy who blessed her with this cursed gift before she’s commanded to do something horrendous, like killing the prince she may have started falling for.

‘Sabrina’ (1995)

Don’t fall in love with brothers. But if you do, make sure they’re rich.

A remake of the eponymous 1954 film, 1995’s “Sabrina” holds a dashing performance from the swoon-worthy Harrison Ford as his character, Linus Larrabee, forms a plan to dissuade the chauffeur’s daughter, Sabrina (Julia Ormond), from hooking up with his betrothed younger brother played by Greg Kinnear.

Yearning so hard even he doesn’t realize how far he’s fallen, Linus’s attempt to get Sabrina to forget about the Larrabee brother she’s waited her whole life to notice her backfires on him tremendously. In this version, it’s the prince rather than Cinderella who must decide if it’s worth it to go after his truest desires.

Sergei Prokofiev’s ‘Cinderella’ Ballet

There’s no place like live theater to see an age-old story be retold. With every watch, the audience finds something new as artists’ performances are unique to every show. While most will only get to see a production once, it’s enough to appreciate the engaging experience unique to seeing performing arts live.

The story of Cinderella was first told through ballet in 1813, but the most popular score used in today’s productions wasn’t composed until 1945 by Sergei Prokofiev. Since then, choreographers around the world have taken new ways to make this classical story a unique experience through production, costuming, choreography and casting.

In some productions, when the prince goes around searching for the masked girl whose foot fits the glass slipper  — or bedazzled pointe shoes — the curtain lowers to show only the legs of dancers. As a new dancer approaches the prince, their failure to put on the slipper is increasingly comedic when flailing, frustrated limbs are the only parts of them seen.

While the ability to see these performances is dependent on location and a company’s season line-up, it’s worth the wait for a production to come near you to support these artists and enrich your soul.