La Cenerentola (Cinderella) is a masterpiece significantly different from Rossini's earlier comic operas. Deftly combining aspects of several genres, Rossini plays off comic characters in the great Italian tradition—Don Magnifico (Cinderella's stepfather) and the valet Dandini—against the sentimental principal roles of Cinderella and the Prince. For his heroine Rossini not only adapts the popular semiseria genre, but also exploits the coloratura style of opera seria, as she is transformed into a princess not by magic but by love and her own innate goodness.

For the hastily-prepared premiere of La Cenerentola in Rome in 1817 a collaborator wrote the simple recitatives, a chorus, and arias for Alidoro (the Prince's tutor) and Clorinda (a stepsister). The chorus was soon dropped, and in 1821 Rossini wrote a new aria for Alidoro. This critical edition provides all the music for the first version, including variants for Clorinda. Appendixes include Rossini's own aria for Alidoro and his variations for Cinderella's final Rondo.