IT IS the fairy tale that made thousands dream of glass slippers and white ball gowns.

Now it has brought a touch of magic to Southampton.

Viewers were thrown into the wonderful world of Cinderella last night as the English National Ballet took a revived version of the world-class production to the Mayflower Theatre.

The new production is the vision of choreographer Christopher Wheeldon who has been able to reinvent a classic while keeping its original magic.

Engaging choreography, spectacular sets and costumes captured the audience’s attention for almost three hours.

Emma Hawes played the role of Cinderella, enchanting the public with her grace.

She and her romantic prince played by Francesco Gabriele Frola showed to have a perfect chemistry which was definitively convincing during their last pas de deux.

Seamless transitions took the audience through the story with creative twists which mixed romance with comic relief.

In Wheeldon's Cinderella fairy creatures, birds and beasties replace the sweet fairy godmother and help Cinderella escape from drudgery.

A fantastic fleet of dancers, representing the four seasons, dance around Cinderella bringing a swirl of colours to the stage before a newly-styled princess-to-be is ready to head to the ball.

This is - with no doubt - one of the most spectacular moments of the whole production as dancers and spinning carriage wheels compose the carriage which takes Cinderella to the ball.

A superb performance is also that of stepmother Sarah Kundi, stepsisters Fernanda Oliveira and Shiori Kase as well as friend of the prince Ken Saruhashi.

Meanwhile, mass ensembles bring the ballroom sequence to life during the second act.

Christopher Wheeldon's production is absolutely inventive and captivating, able to capture the attention of people of all ages.

The English National Ballet Philharmonic also plays justice to the melodious tunes of Prokofiev's sublime score.

All of that transports the audience into the magical world of Cinderella in a production which marks the 70th anniversary of the English National Ballet.

The show will run until Saturday October 26.