The extraordinary, multi-talented artist Alma Deutscher, born in 2005, began composing at age six, and within just a few years had created an astonishing body of work, receiving media attention from around the globe. In this Virginia Arts Festival collaboration, Deutscher will conduct student musicians and vocalists from The Governor's School for the Arts in her opera Cinderella.

While the plot of the opera is based on the traditional fairy-tale, Deutscher adapted the story to revolve around music. After Cinderella flees the ball, the prince will search for her not with the aid of a glass slipper, but with the beginning of a melody, which only she will know how to continue. Completed when she was just 12, Cinderella's premiere received glowing reviews, including this from Opera Today: "A young talent's sensational burst to prominence... a once-in-a-lifetime opera-going event that had audiences standing and cheering."