Cinderella exhibition

Last week my sister and I visited the Cinderella Exhibition By Swarovski at Leicester Square Gardens. Offering a behind-the-scenes experience that celebrates Disney’s most iconic princess, we were like kids in a sweet shop.

The exhibition honours the heritage of the original animated Cinderella, which is celebrating its 65th anniversary this year, alongside Kenneth Branagh’s modern realisation for the big screen.

The exhibition takes you behind the magic of the movie. It starts with original drawings and storyboards from the 1950’s classic animation alongside sets, costumes and props from the new film.

Swarovski provided over 1.7 million crystals for the costumes designed by Sandy Powell to add extra sparkle to Cinderella’s magical world.

Nine versions of the iconic blue ballgown were made for the film. Each one took 20 people 500 hours to create, features more than 270 yards of fabric, four miles of thread and 10,000 tiny Swarovski crystals.

Swarovski also produced the iconic glass slippers, created from solid crystal.
Four pairs were made for the film, with each individual shoe costing £20,000 - not that they were worn much (in active scenes acrylic versions were worn and turned into Swarovski slippers using CGI).

 Advance tickets to the exhibition are now fully booked up, but there are still daily walk-up tickets available – see the onsite box office in Leicester Square Gardens. 

Find out more here or by searching for #CinderellaExhibition on social media.

  

 Advance tickets to the exhibition are now fully booked up, but there are still daily walk-up tickets available – see the onsite box office in Leicester Square Gardens.

Open to the public from 21 March – 10 April 2015.