As there is no wholly recommendable recording of Cendrillon on CD, a new DVD release is welcome. To date the only serious option for collectors has been the 1979 Sony set (7/79) but that is lamed by its casting of a tenor as Prince Charming – and, even worse, the ageing Nicolai Gedda. It is ironic, then, that this video, where seeing a ‘pantomime boy’ onstage might be thought a problem, properly prefers a mezzo in the role and brings off its casting with triumph.

Insofar as there is any weakness here, it lies with Laurent Pelly’s production. First seen in Santa Fe but recorded live at the Royal Opera House in London, the production links the opera back to Perrault’s fairy-tale. The sets consist of the open pages of a giant book and disappointingly little else, except when the Fairy’s enchanted dell is located among the smoking chimneys of the Paris rooftops, an idea reminiscent of Mary Poppins. Prospective purchasers can rest assured that Pelly does no violence to the opera but his heavy-handed pantomime style does not aim much above the lowest-common-denominator opinion of what Massenet was about. Other productions have shown a lighter touch.

Happily, the cast is a strong one. Joyce DiDonato brings star quality to the title-role, touching the heart and singing with a bit more freedom than on the opening night, when her voice sounded tremulous and thin at the top. She does, though, seem too feisty to play the downtrodden parlour-maid. DiDonato would surely be ideal casting as the Prince but in that role we have Alice Coote in simply stunning form, pouring out a stream of molten mezzo ardour. Eglise Gutiérrez is nicely delicate in the Fairy’s music, though the voice can sound fuzzy, and Ewa Podles´ brings her ten-ton cannon of a contralto to bear as Madame de la Haltière, the stepmother from hell. That leaves Jean-Philippe Lafont, now rusty and often out of tune, as Pandolfe. Bertrand de Billy’s sparkling style makes him an ideal conductor for Massenet and he obtains first-rate orchestral playing. Whatever the shortcomings of the production, this is good enough to deserve the long-awaited recommendation.