Special Features Here’s Where You’ve Seen the Cast of 1997’s Cinderella Onstage Explore the theatre resumes of Brandy, Bernadette Peters, Whoopi Goldberg, and more.

By Dan Meyer

February 11, 2021

It’s been 23 years since Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Cinderella debuted. Since then, the cast—many of whom were already famous at the time of its premiere—have gone on to appear in a variety of popular stage projects.

Check out below where you might’ve seen them since the ball in 1997.

Brandy Norwood as Cinderella
Shortly after her starring turn, Brandy continued to dominate the music industry when she released one of the most popular R&B duo songs ever recorded. “The Boy is Mine” earned her and Monica a Grammy and a spot in the pantheon of epic rival tracks. After her sitcom Moesha ended in 2001, Brandy continued to make music, tour, and appear in film & TV projects, which lead up to her Broadway debut in 2015 as Roxie Hart in Chicago. She returned to make a scandal and a start at the Ambassador Theatre in 2017 and even joined the national tour cast in L.A. and Washington, D.C. for a short time. Most recently, she reunited with Monica in an episode of Versuz, where the duo went head-to-head discussing the best of their song catalog in a friendly competition. As for what’s next, Brandy told Playbill in 2017 that she wants to play Annie Oakley on stage. Someone get Buffalo Bill on the line!

READ: Cinderella, a Richard Rodgers Mix-Tape: Which Tunes Come From Other Shows?

Bernadette Peters as Cinderella’s Stepmother
Speaking of Annie Oakley, less than two years from the film’s premiere, Peters added another Tony to her shelf for playing the sharpshooter in the 1999 revival. Then, in a 2003 staging of Gypsy, the star played Mama Rose in a performance matched by only Ethel Merman herself. While she lost the Tony that year, it didn’t matter: Peters had officially cemented her status as an immortal legend of the stage (if she hadn’t already with turns in Sunday in the Park With George, Mack & Mabel, Song & Dance, and Into The Woods). Since then, she’s appeared on the Main Stem in A Little Night Music, Follies, and Hello, Dolly!. In the past decade, she’s had memorable TV turns on Smash, Mozart in the Jungle, and The Good Fight. In 2020, she returned to NYC's theatre district to sing “Sunday” alongside a number of Broadway favorites.

Paolo Montalban (Prince Christopher)
Following his TV debut, the dashing young actor quickly developed an impressive stage pedigree, having already made his Broadway debut in the 1996 revival of The King & I. After starring in the small-screen adaptation of Mortal Kombat, Montalban returned to the boards to play Manjiro in the 2005 staging of Pacific Overtures. In 2013, he played opposite Emilia Clarke in Breakfast at Tiffany’s. Elsewhere, the star has appeared in The Public’s Two Gentlemen of Verona at the Delacorte Theatre, Playwrights Horizons’ Bella: An American Tall Tale, Transport Group’s The Unsinkable Molly Brown at Abrons Arts Center, and several productions at Paper Mill Playhouse. Most recently, he performed “Ten Minutes Ago” from Cinderella on R&H Goes Pop!–At Home in a music video. Check it out here.

Whoopi Goldberg (Queen Constantina)
Fresh off her portrayal of Prologus in A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, Goldberg put on a crown in the R&H adaptation and basically never took it off. She won a Tony for producing Thoroughly Modern Millie in 2002 and played Ma Rainey in the 2003 revival of Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom. In the latter part of the decade, she was a driving force behind adapting Sister Act for the stage as a producer—eventually putting the habit back on as Mother Superior in London. She’ll play Delores van Cartier in the West End revival when theatres reopen.

Victor Garber (King Maximillian)
With four Tony nominations already under his belt by the time he appeared in the Disney musical, Garber (Damn Yankees, Lend Me a Tenor, Little Me, Deathtrap) was a hot commodity on the stage. His memorable turn as Daddy Warbucks in the 1999 made-for-TV-musical adaptation of Annie made him instantly recognizable to millennials in 2001 when he burst back onto screens in a double-whammy: CIA agent Jack Bristow on ABC’s spy thriller Alias and the dastardly Professor Callahan in Legally Blonde. The star returned to the Main Stem in a 2010 revival of Present Laughter and would meet Bernadette Peters again—albeit this time on stage in 2018 as replacements in Hello, Dolly!.

Jason Alexander (Lionel)
The summer of 1989 was a big year for this Broadway alum and sitcom star: He won the Tony for Jerome Robbins’ Broadway in June and then Seinfeld debuted in July. Nearly a decade later, Alexander was as popular as ever when Cinderella premiered. Since then, he’s remained in the hearts of theatregoers by appearing and directing a number of projects. He played Max Bialystock in the national tour of The Producers, returned to Broadway in Fish in the Dark, and helmed The Last Five Years at Syracuse Stage. In 2017, he starred opposite Sherie Rene Scott in The Portuguese Kid.

INTERVIEW: Why Jason Alexander Gave Up Dramatic Roles for Comedy

Veanne Cox (Calliope)
By the time she appeared in Cinderella, Cox already had a Tony nomination for her portrayal of Amy (“Not Getting Married Today”) in the 1995 revival of Company. At the turn of the century, the stage favorite appeared in Neil Simon’s The Dinner Party before going on to play Rose Stopnick Gellman in the 2004 Tony-winning musical Caroline, or Change. More recently, the performer has appeared on Broadway in La Cage Aux Folles, A Free Man of Color, and An American in Paris. She played Eulalie Mackecknie Shinn in the 2019 Kennedy Center production of The Music Man. Last year, she scored a Daytime Emmy Award nomination for her work in Alex Wyse and Wesley Taylor’s digital series Indoor Boys.

Sergio Trujillo (Dancer)
Yes, the 2019 Tony-winning choreographer of Ain’t Too Proud—The Life and Times of the Temptations was indeed a background dancer in Cinderella. In between those milestones, Trujillo also celebrated a very special occasion in 2011 when he had four shows on Broadway at the same time, serving as the choreographer of Memphis, Jersey Boys, The Addams Family, and Next to Normal. After that, he earned a Tony nod for On Your Feet! and choreographed Summer: The Donna Summer Musical.

In Memoriam

Natalie Desselle Reid (Minerva)
Ms. Reid made her screen debut in an episode of Family Matters shortly before starring in B.A.P.S. with Halle Berry. Following Cinderella, Ms. Reid appeared in a number of TV and film projects including For Your Love, Eve, and Madea’s Big Happy Family. Prior to her professional break, the performer studied theatre at Grambling State University. In 2020, she was set to reprise her role as Mickey in B.A.P.S. Live, a stage adaptation of the comedy film, but the tour was delayed due to COVID-19. In December, Ms. Reid passed away following a private battle with colon cancer.

Whitney Houston (Fairy Godmother)
One year after Cinderella, Ms. Houston returned with her first solo album in years: My Love Is Your Love. As the millennium turned, turmoil followed the singer throughout her various successes, which included two hit albums Just Whitney and I Look to You, a world tour, and a featured role in the film Sparkle (released posthumously). In February 2012, Ms. Houston passed away due to a combination of heart disease and drug use. The star’s impact is still felt today as her music continues to influence countless artists and entertain listeners worldwide, including in the stage adaptation of her star vehicle The Bodyguard. A biopic starring Naomi Ackie is set to be released in 2022.

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Relive the Brandy and Whitney Houston-Led Cinderella With These Production Photos

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