Alexsandra Meijer in Ben Stevenson’s Cinderella

Here’s a sweet story to brighten up your Friday: Ballet San Jose—which recently overcame a formidable fundraising hurdle to stay afloat—will give 4,000 kids and their mothers (or mentors) tickets to see the company’s production of Cinderella, May 8–10. Two donors have already contributed $100,000 toward the project, which BSJ is calling “Grant a Wish” for Mother’s Day.

And what better ballet to choose to shine a spotlight on mothers and all they do for us? After all, BSJ’s Cinderella (with choreography by Ben Stevenson and Prokofiev’s classic music) features the memory of a loving mother who’s now passed away; an exceedingly generous—and magical—fairy godmother with the power to gift luxury ball gowns out of thin air; and, well, an evil stepmother. But at least she’s good for comic relief, right?

Photo by Robert Shomler, courtesy of Ballet San Jose