THE TWELVE DANCING PRINCESSES

Once again, Le Cain takes the Grimms' well-known tale as an occasion to indulge his fancy for theatrical splendor--in ornate borders, overwrought decor, forests burnished gold or strung with diamonds, and the princesses' artificial poses and elaborate 18th-century ball gowns. As if to avoid distracting readers from the spectacle, he eliminates the traditional, tension-producing alternative: instead of losing their heads if they fail to discover where the princesses dance each night, the suitors here are simply dismissed. Uninvolving, ostentatious glitter.