Act One

On a dark stage, a little Girl holding a giant storybook asks to have a fairy tale read to her. The Narrator appears and summons the classic Princesses so the Girl can pick a story: Snow White, Sleeping Beauty, Princess and the Pea, Rapunzel, and finally… Cinderella. ("…Baby One More Time"). Cinderella is chosen.

After the characters finish telling Cinderella's story, Stepmother coaches wicked stepsisters Belinda and Betany to catch Prince Charming's attention but to no avail. When they have a moment alone, Cinderella invites Prince Charming to Scroll Club (a reading club for the Princesses). She confides in him that she feels their relationship - and her life - is missing something. Much to her surprise, she learns that he is paid per story while she isn't. Prince Charming deflects by telling her to smile and that he knows exactly what she needs: a baby! ("Make Me")

At Scroll Club in Snow White's cottage, Cinderella gets the other Princesses thinking about what's missing from their lives ("Lucky"). Afterwards, Cinderella is walking through the woods when she comes across a mysterious object… a book. The Original Fairy Godmother appears (aka the Notorious O.F.G.) and helps her open the book, a copy of The Feminine Mystique by Betty Friedan. As she peruses, Cinderella strongly relates to what Friedan wrote about. Fairy Godmother wows her with the news that there are women who write and even vote in a faraway land called America. She gives Cinderella the book but warns her not to show it to anyone.

Hiding her book, Cinderella performs the scene where Stepmother, Belinda, and Betany mock her for wanting to go to the Prince's ball ("Work"). Stepmother finds the book and confiscates it, claiming it's witchcraft. Cinderella sneaks off to Snow White's cottage and begs her to help get the book back. Snow White warns her that if she gets caught in Cinderella's story, they could both be banished like O.F.G. was.

At the Prince's ball scene ("Boys / Pretty Girls", Cinderella and Snow White enter in disguise. She introduces Snow to Prince Erudite, who tries to conceal his attraction to Prince Charming. Cinderella corners Stepmother and demands to have her book back. Stepmother says she will if Cinderella rejects the Prince at the ball.

Prince Charming has a grand entrance ("Circus"). Cinderella grabs the book from Belinda, who takes her disguise off. The Narrator orders Cinderella to get back on track and dance with the Prince. At first, Cinderella tries to refuse the Prince, but she falters ("Sometimes"). Snow White recognizes Prince Charming as *her* Prince. Cinderella and Show White confront him about cheating on them. Sheepishly caught, Prince Charming can only say "Oops! I Did It Again".

Back at her cottage, Snow White laments Prince Charming's betrayal to the other Princesses ("From The Bottom of My Broken Heart"). Prince Erudite arrives at the cottage and has an awkwardly adorable introduction to Clumsy, one of Snow White's helpers. The meet-cute is ruined by the Narrator's arrival. The Narrator scolds Cinderella and Show White for being "hysterical" and warns them that they could be banished for being too unlikable.

O.F.G. finds Cinderella and encourages her to write her own fairy tale. In the dressmaking scene as Betany and Belinda taunt her ("Slave 4 U" / "Piece of Me"), Cinderella takes her torn gown and makes it into something new for herself. Breaking from the scene, she runs off to meet the Princesses at Rapunzel's tower.

Prince Charming surprises the Princesses at the tower. It turns out, he's not just been cheating on Snow White and Cinderella. He's been cheating on all of the Princesses! Outraged, they confront him ("Womanizer") and drop him in a wishing well. Cinderella shows The Feminine Mystique to the Princesses and makes a wish for more copies so they could all read it. O.F.G. appears with more books. As they go through the book together, they become enraged ("Scream & Shout" / "I Wanna Go") and go on strike.

Act Two

The Princesses' strike has turned the kingdom upside down and is driving everyone "Crazy". Stepmother schemes to convince the Narrator to recast Betany or Belinda in Cinderella's role for the story. The Narrator tells Charming to go get Cinderella back. At first, Charming is determined to really listen to Cinderella and pay attention to her needs, but Stepmother quickly steers him away from that approach ("3").

Meanwhile, the Princesses are marching to the Narrator's castle to demand equality ("Gimme More"). Clumsy and Prince Erudite are joining as allies. They confess their feelings for each other and kiss. Cinderella goes off on her own in the forest to look for O.F.G.. Charming finds her and begs her to come back so everything can be like what it used to be ("Cinderella"). Cinderella tells him their relationship never actually worked, and it's time for him to let her go.

The Narrator finally comes around to Stepmother's idea to replace Cinderella with one of her daughters. She encourages him to go even further and banish all the Princesses to Story's End ("Toxic"). One by one, each Princess except Cinderella disappears. When Betany and Belinda protest, the Narrator banishes them as well, much to Stepmother's horror. When Cinderella shows up, the Narrator demands she arrive at the palace to marry Prince Charming if she wants to save her friends. Cinderella is devastated ("Everytime")

Cinderella encounters the little Girl from the beginning. The Girl shows her book of fairy tales is now empty - but hope is not lost. She tells Cinderella that she loves her new story and shares some wisdom from her godmother: "If you don't change, you can't grow." O.F.G appears, and the three head to the palace.

At the palace, Cinderella arrives in time for Prince Charming to put the famed glass slipper on her foot and marry her. However, she takes the slipper and shatters it ("Stronger"), banishing the Narrator to Story's End and bringing the Princesses back. Taking pity on the Narrator, Cinderella frees him and gives him a chance to change his own story. Together, the characters look forward to changing their world and a new "happily ever after" ("Stronger Part 2" and "Megamix").