The story of Rapunzel and its themes have appeared in literature and other forms of art. This page provides a small discussion of some of the better known treatments by authors and other artists. Novels produced by romance publishers are not listed on this page, but can be found on Romance Novels: Fairy Tale Romances at Rapunzel.
Dokey, Cameron. Golden. New York: Simon Pulse, 2006.
Amazon.com: Buy the book in paperback.
NOVEL: From the publisher: "One so fair, let down your hair. Let us go from here to there." Before Rapunzel's birth, her mother made a dangerous deal with the sorceress Melisande: If she could not love newborn Rapunzel just as she appeared, she would surrender the child to Melisande. When Rapunzel was born completely bald and without hope of ever growing hair, her horrified mother sent her away with the sorceress to an uncertain future. After sixteen years of raising Rapunzel as her own child, Melisande reveals that she has another daughter, Rue. She was cursed by a wizard years ago and needs Rapunzel's help. Rue and Rapunzel have precisely "two nights and the day that falls between" to break the enchantment. But bitterness and envy come between the girls, and if they fail to work together, Rue will remain cursed . . . forever. "
Durst, Sara. Into the Wild. New York: Razorbill, 2007.
Amazon.com: Buy the book in hardcover.
NOVEL: From the publisher: "Twelve-year-old Julie has grown up hearing about the dangerous world of fairy tales, “The Wild,” from which her mother, Rapunzel, escaped. Now The Wild wants its characters back. Julie comes home from school to find her mother gone and a deep, dark forest swallowing her hometown. Julie must fight wicked witches, avoid glass slippers and fairy godmothers, fly griffins, and outwit ogres in order to rescue her mom and save her Massachusetts town from becoming a fairy-tale kingdom. Sarah Beth Durst weaves a postmodern fairy tale that’s fresh, funny, and sweetly poignant. "
Durst, Sarah. Out of the Wild. New York: Razorbill, 2008.
Amazon.com: Buy the book in hardcover.
NOVEL: From the publisher: "Beware the Wild—it bites. Ever since Julie Marchen helped defeat the fairytale world of the Wild, life’s been pretty much back to normal. That is, as normal as life can be for a girl whose mom is Rapunzel. Yes, that Rapunzel. Then the Wild mysteriously releases Zel’s prince (Julie’s dad!)—a rescue-minded hero who crashes full-speed ahead into the 21st century! (YOU try teaching a 500-year-old prince to use a seatbelt.) Julie’s over the moon, but when a wicked Fairy Godmother kidnaps Sleeping Beauty and reawakens the Wild, Julie and her dad set off on an action-packed adventure to save the distressed damsel… and the world. If they can’t, they’ll spend eternity in a fairytale." Sequel to Into the Wild.
Flinn, Alex. Towering. New York: HarperTeen, 2013.
Amazon.com: Buy the book in ebook or hardcover.
NOVEL: When Rachel was taken to live in a tower by a woman she calls Mama, she was excited. She felt like a princess in a castle. But many years later, Rachel knows her palace is really a prison, and begins to plan her escape. She is encouraged by the speed that her golden hair has been growing. It’s gotten long enough to reach the ground. And she’s begun dreaming of a green-eyed man. Could he be out there in the world? Is he coming to save her? Or will she find a way to save herself?
Forsyth, Kate. Bitter Greens. New York: Thomas Dunne, 2014.
Amazon.com: Buy the book in hardcover.
Amazon.co.uk: Buy the book in hardcover.
NOVEL: A synopsis from Amazon.com: Charlotte-Rose de la Force, exiled from the court of King Louis XIV, has always been a great talker and teller of tales. Selena Leonelli, once the exquisite muse of the great Venetian artist Tiziano, is terrified of time. Margherita, trapped in a doorless tower and burdened by tangles of her red-gold hair, must find a way to escape. You may think you know the story of Rapunzel ...
Geras, Adele. The Tower Room. San Diego, CA: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1992.
Amazon.com: Buy the book in paperback.
NOVEL: A synopsis from Amazon.com: "A contemporary Rapunzel story follows the love affair between a boarding school student who lives in a tower room and a new laboratory assistant who scales a scaffold to her window. This is the first book in the trilogy by Geras about British schoolgirls whose lives parallel familiar fairy tales." The entire trilogy is: The Tower Room (Rapunzel), Watching the Roses (Briar Rose), and Pictures of the Night (Snow White).
Gray, Nicholas Stuart. The Stone Cage. London: Dennis Dobson, 1963.
Amazon.com: Buy the book in hardcover or paperback.
NOVEL: We meet a procession of wildly improbable characters such as Tomlyn the cat, who has also been a prisoner of the wicked witch - Mother Gothel, the Raven, Nannygow, Gobbolin and a troll called Battypan. All are involved in the battle to save Rapunzel from an evil fate. Gray also adapted this story into a stage play.
Hale, Shannon and Dean Hale. Rapunzel's Revenge. New York: Bloomsbury USA Children's Books, 2008.
Amazon.com: Buy the book in hardcover.
GRAPHIC NOVEL: From the publisher: "Once upon a time, in a land you only think you know, lived a little girl and her mother . . . or the woman she thought was her mother.
"Every day, when the little girl played in her pretty garden, she grew more curious about what lay on the other side of the garden wall . . . a rather enormous garden wall.
"And every year, as she grew older, things seemed weirder and weirder, until the day she finally climbed to the top of the wall and looked over into the mines and desert beyond."
Holmes, Sara. Letters from Rapunzel. New York: Dennis Dobson, 2007.
Amazon.com: Buy the book in hardcover.
NOVEL: From the publisher: "Once upon a time, there was a girl. Let's call her Rapunzel. A modern-day version. Abandoned. Alone. Waiting for her hair to grow and dreaming of a way to escape from her tower. She was trapped, you see. Not in the conventional fairy-tale way—this was the dreaded after-school Homework Club. A desolate place, where no gum could be chewed, and where Rapunzel sat day after day, cursing the evil spell that had been cast over her father. The doctors called it something else, but a true heroine can smell an evil spell a mile away. So when a mysterious letter addressed to P.O. Box #5667 falls into her hands, she knows she's found the pea under her mattress. But since when is finding happily ever after as simple as Just Writing Back? Winner of the Ursula Nordstrom Fiction Contest, Sara Lewis Holmes's enchanting debut novel is a breath of fresh air. Told through letters, with a liberal sprinkling of fairy dust, Rapunzel's quest for a happy ending gives every reader something to believe in."
Mason, Jane B. and Sarah Hines Stephens. Princess School: Let Down Your Hair. New York: Scholastic, 2004.
Amazon.com: Buy the book in paperback.
Amazon.co.uk: Buy the book in paperback.
NOVEL: From the publisher: Rapunzel and Prince Val have been best friends for years. But lately, Val's too busy fawning over Rose. Rapunzel could really use Val and her other friends right now. Madame Gothel, the witch who keeps Rapunzel locked in the tower, just discovered that she has been climbing out to attend Princess School. Madame Gothel is furious--and determined to keep Rapunzel from escaping again. Will Rapunzel lose her friends, Princess School, and her freedom all at once--or is there a way to get the witch out of her hair?
Masson, Sophie. The Crystal Heart. New York: Random House, 2014.
Amazon.com: Buy the book in paperback and ebook.
Amazon.co.uk: Buy the book in paperback.
NOVEL: From the publisher: A girl in a tower. An underground kingdom. This retelling of Rapunzel offers a gripping blend of magic, romance, adventure, fairytale, and mystery. When 17-year-old army conscript Kasper Bator is chosen to join the elite guard that keeps watch over a dangerous prisoner in a tower, he believes what he's been told: the prisoner is a powerful witch. But when he meets the prisoner, Kasper's life will change forever—for the prisoner is no witch, but a beautiful young girl. The daughter of the country's enemy, the Prince of Night, Izolda has been held hostage since she was three. And she is in imminent danger, for a prophecy says she must die on her 16th birthday if Krainos is to be saved from the Prince of Night. Kasper decides to help her escape. As the days pass, their friendship turns into real love, but their hiding place won't stay safe forever.
Meyer, Marissa. Cress (Lunar Chronicles). New York: Feiwel & Friends, 2014.
Amazon.com: Buy the book in hardcover or ebook.
Amazon.co.uk: Buy the book in hardcover.
NOVEL: From the publisher: In this third book in Marissa Meyer's bestselling Lunar Chronicles series, Cinder and Captain Thorne are fugitives on the run, now with Scarlet and Wolf in tow. Together, they’re plotting to overthrow Queen Levana and prevent her army from invading Earth. Their best hope lies with Cress, a girl trapped on a satellite since childhood who’s only ever had her netscreens as company. All that screen time has made Cress an excellent hacker. Unfortunately, she’s being forced to work for Queen Levana, and she’s just received orders to track down Cinder and her handsome accomplice. When a daring rescue of Cress goes awry, the group is splintered. Cress finally has her freedom, but it comes at a higher price than she’d ever expected. Meanwhile, Queen Levana will let nothing prevent her marriage to Emperor Kai, especially the cyborg mechanic. Cress, Scarlet, and Cinder may not have signed up to save the world, but they may be the only hope the world has.
Mlynowski, Sarah. Whatever After #5: Bad Hair Day. New York: Scholastic Press, 2014.
Amazon.com: Buy the book in hardcover or ebook.
Amazon.co.uk: Buy the book in hardcover.
NOVEL: From the publisher: In this magical fifth installment of the hit series, siblings Abby and Jonah fall into the fairy tale of Rapunzel . . . and hilarity ensues! Fractured fairy tales are all the rage, and this series has been a huge hit! This time, the magic mirror sucks Abby and Jonah into the story of Rapunzel. When the siblings get the famous tale all tangled up, they have to find a way to set things right . . . with hilarious results! With quick thinking and a bit of magic, can Abby and Jonah turn this bad hair day around? Find out in this whimsical adventure!
Napoli, Donna Jo. Zel. New York: Dutton Books, 1996.
Amazon.com: Buy the book in hardcover or paperback.
NOVEL: A wonderful book about the witch, Rapunzel and the prince which presents the story from each of their points of view. Napoli has served the fairy tale world well with her fairy tale interpretations.
Robins, Madeleine E. Sold for Endless Rue. New York: Forge, 2013.
Amazon.com: Buy the book in ebook or hardcover.
NOVEL: After a blighted childhood, young Laura finds peace and purpose in the home of a midwife and healer. Later, she enrolls in Salerno's famed medical school—the first in the world to admit women. Laura and her adoptive mother hope that Laura can build a bridge between women's herbal healing and the new science of medicine developing in thirteenth century Italy.
The hardest lessons are those of love; Laura falls hard for a fellow student who abandons her for a wealthy wife. Worse, her mother rejects her as "impure." Shattered, Laura devotes herself to her work, becoming a respected medico. But her heart is still bitter, and when she sees a chance for revenge, she grabs it—and takes for her own Bieta, the newborn daughter of a woman whose husband regularly raided the physician's garden for bitter herbs to satisfy his pregnant wife's cravings.
Determined to protect her adored daughter from the ravages of the world, Laura isolates the young woman in a tower. Bieta, as determined as her mother, escapes, and finds adventure—and love—on the streets of Salerno.
Bieta's betrayal of her mother's love comes at a terrible price as lives are ruined and families are torn apart. Laura's medical knowledge cannot heal her broken heart; only a great act of love can bring everyone forgiveness and peace.
Turgeon, Carolyn. The Fairest of Them All. New York: Touchstone, 2013.
Amazon.com: Buy the book in ebook or paperback.
NOVEL: In this kingdom, only one fairy tale can end with happily ever after.
In an enchanted forest, the maiden Rapunzel’s beautiful voice captivates a young prince hunting nearby. Overcome, he climbs her long golden hair to her tower and they spend an afternoon of passion together, but by nightfall the prince must return to his kingdom, and his betrothed.
Now king, he weds his intended and the kingdom rejoices when a daughter named Snow White is born. Beyond the castle walls, Rapunzel waits in her crumbling tower, gathering news of her beloved from those who come to her seeking wisdom. She tries to mend her broken heart but her love lingers, pulsing in the magic tendrils of her hair.
The king, too, is haunted by his memories, but after his queen’s mysterious death, he is finally able to follow his heart into the darkness of the forest. But can Rapunzel trade the shadows of the forest for the castle and be the innocent beauty he remembers?
Berliner, Janet. "After the Flowering." Little Red Riding Hood in the Big Bad City. Martin H. Greenberg and John Helfers, eds. New York: DAW, 2004.
Amazon.com: Buy the book in paperback.
SHORT STORY
Bishop, Anne. "Rapunzel." Black Swan, White Raven . Ellen Datlow and Terri Windling, eds. New York: Avon, 1997.
Amazon.com: Buy the book in hardcover or paperback.
SHORT STORY
Donoghue, Emma. "The Tale of the Hair." Kissing the Witch: Old Tales in New Skins. New York: Harper Collins, 1997.
Amazon.com: Buy the book in hardcover or paperback.
SHORT STORY
DuBois, Brendan. "Rapunzel's Revenge." Once Upon A Crime. Ed Gorman and Martin H. Greenberg, eds. New York: Berkeley Prime Crime, 1998.
Amazon.com: Buy the book in hardcover or paperback.
SHORT STORY
Fleet Street Fairies. "Rapunzel's Revenge." Rapunzel's Revenge: Fairy Tales for Feminists. Dublin: Attic Press, 1985.
Amazon.com: Buy the book in hardcover or paperback.
SHORT STORY: A spoof of the Rapunzel tale.
Friesner, Esther. "Big Hair." Black Heart, Ivory Bones. Ellen Datlow and Terri Windling, eds. New York: Avon, 2000.
Amazon.com: Buy the book in paperback.
SHORT STORY
Frost, Gregory. "The Root of the Matter." Snow White, Blood Red. Ellen Datlow and Terri Windling, eds. New York: Avon, 1995.
Amazon.com: Buy the book in hardcover or paperback.
SHORT STORY
Galloway, Priscilla. "A Bed of Peas."Truly Grim Tales. New York: Delacorte, 1995.
Amazon.com: Buy the book in paperback.
SHORT STORY
Garner, James Finn. "Rapunzel." Politically Correct Bedtime Stories: Modern Tales for Our Life and Times. New York: Hungry Minds Inc, 1994.
Amazon.com: Buy the book in hardcover.
SHORT STORY
Haddam, Jane. "Rapunzel." Once Upon A Crime. Ed Gorman and Martin H. Greenberg, eds. New York: Berkeley Prime Crime, 1998.
Amazon.com: Buy the book in hardcover or paperback.
SHORT STORY
Hawes, Louise. "Dame Nigran's Tower." Black Pearls: A Faerie Strand. New York: Houghton Mifflin, 2008.
Amazon.com: Buy the book in hardcover.
SHORT STORY: "Dame Nigran's Tower" is a mother-daughter version of Rapunzel, told from the witch's viewpoint.
Lee, Tanith. "The Golden Rope."Red as Blood: Or Tales from the Sisters Grimmer. New York: DAW Books, 1983.
Amazon.com: Buy the book in paperback.
SHORT STORY
Lee, Tanith. "Rapunzel." Black Heart, Ivory Bones. Ellen Datlow and Terri Windling, eds. New York: Avon, 2000.
Amazon.com: Buy the book in paperback.
SHORT STORY
Lynn, Elizabeth A. "The Princess in the Tower." Snow White, Blood Red. Ellen Datlow and Terri Windling, eds. New York: Avon, 1995.
Amazon.com: Buy the book in hardcover or paperback.
SHORT STORY
Mandell, Jude. "Thoroughly Modern Rapunzel ."Newfangled Fairy Tales: Book #2. Bruce Lansky, ed. New York: Meadowbrook Press, 1998.
Amazon.com: Buy the book in paperback.
SHORT STORY
Metzger, Lois. "The Girl in the Attic." My Swan Sister: Fairy Tales Retold. Ellen Datlow and Terri Windling, eds. New York: Simon and Schuster, 2003.
Amazon.com: Buy the book in hardback or paperback.
SHORT STORY
Nesbit, E. "Melisande." Nine Unlikely Tales. London: T. Fisher Unwin, 1901.
SHORT STORY: Read the story here on SurLaLune.
Parks, Richard. "Thy Golden Stair." Twice Upon A Time. Denise Little, ed. New York: DAW Books, 1999.
Amazon.com: Buy the book in paperback.
SHORT STORY
Scheckley, Robert. "Rapunzel--The True Story." Rotten Relations. Denise Little, editor. New York: DAW, 2004.
Amazon.com: Buy the book in paperback.
SHORT STORY
Spaar, Lisa Russ. "Rapunzel's Exile." The Year's Best Fantasy and Horror, Volume 10. Ellen Datlow and Terri Windling, eds. New York: St. Martin's Press, 1997.
SHORT STORY
Stegner, Wallace Earl. "Maiden in a Tower." City of the Living & Other Stories. Boston, Houghton Mifflin, 1956.
SHORT STORY: Story by a Pulitzer Prize winning author.
Wade, Susan. "Like a Red, Red Rose." Snow White, Blood Red. Ellen Datlow and Terri Windling, eds. New York: Avon, 1995.
Amazon.com: Buy the book in hardcover or paperback.
SHORT STORY
Bennett, Bruce. "The Skeptical Prince." The Poets' Grimm: 20th Century Poems from Grimm Fairy Tales. Jeanne Marie Beaumont and Claudia Carlson, editors. Ashland, OR: Story Line Press, 2003. p. 124.
Amazon.com: Buy the book in paperback.
Broumas, Olga. "Rapunzel." Beginning with O. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 1977.
Amazon.com: Buy the book in hardcover or paperback.
Also available in:
Broumas, Olga. "Rapunzel." The Poets' Grimm: 20th Century Poems from Grimm Fairy Tales. Jeanne Marie Beaumont and Claudia Carlson, editors. Ashland, OR: Story Line Press, 2003. p. 141.
Amazon.com: Buy the book in paperback.
Charman, Janet. "Rapunzel's mothers." Rapunzel Rapunzel. Auckland: Auckland University Press, 1999.
Amazon.com: Buy the book in paperback.
This collection contains many poems with fairy tale themes, some of which can be read on the Press page about the book at Rapunzel Rapunzel.
Cooley, Nicole. "Rampion." The Poets' Grimm: 20th Century Poems from Grimm Fairy Tales. Jeanne Marie Beaumont and Claudia Carlson, editors. Ashland, OR: Story Line Press, 2003. p. 164.
Amazon.com: Buy the book in paperback.
Crapsey, Adelaide. "Rapunzel." Verse. New York: The Manas Press, 1915.
Read the poem on this site at Rapunzel .
Davidman, Joy. "The Princess In The Ivory Tower." Disenchantments: An Anthology of Modern Fairy Tale Poetry. Wolfgang Mieder, ed. Hanover, NH: University Press of New England, 1985.
Amazon.com: Buy the book in hardcover or paperback.
Dolin, Sharon. "Jealousy." The Poets' Grimm: 20th Century Poems from Grimm Fairy Tales. Jeanne Marie Beaumont and Claudia Carlson, editors. Ashland, OR: Story Line Press, 2003. p. 99.
Amazon.com: Buy the book in paperback.
Dun, Rosemary. "Rapunzel." In Nth Position. Online. Available: http://www.nthposition.com/rapunzelamp.php. [26 March 2007].
Friman, Alice. "Rapunzel." The Poets' Grimm: 20th Century Poems from Grimm Fairy Tales. Jeanne Marie Beaumont and Claudia Carlson, editors. Ashland, OR: Story Line Press, 2003. p. 123.
Amazon.com: Buy the book in paperback.
Hay, Sara Henderson. "Rapunzel." Story Hour. Fayetteville, AS: University of Arkansas Press, 1998.
Amazon.com: Buy the book in hardcover or paperback.
Hemphill, Essex. "Song for Rapunzel." The Poets' Grimm: 20th Century Poems from Grimm Fairy Tales. Jeanne Marie Beaumont and Claudia Carlson, editors. Ashland, OR: Story Line Press, 2003. p. 143.
Amazon.com: Buy the book in paperback.
Hewett, Dorothy. "Grave Fairytale." The Poets' Grimm: 20th Century Poems from Grimm Fairy Tales. Jeanne Marie Beaumont and Claudia Carlson, editors. Ashland, OR: Story Line Press, 2003. p. 191.
Amazon.com: Buy the book in paperback.
Hillman, Brenda. "Rapunzel." The Poets' Grimm: 20th Century Poems from Grimm Fairy Tales. Jeanne Marie Beaumont and Claudia Carlson, editors. Ashland, OR: Story Line Press, 2003. p. 134.
Amazon.com: Buy the book in paperback.
Kicknosway, Faye. "Rapunzel." American Poetry Since 1970: Up Late. Andrei Codrescu, ed. New York: Four Walls Eight Windows, 1989.
Lochhead, Liz. "Rapunzstiltskin." Dreaming Frankenstein and Collected Poems. London: Polygon Books, 1984.
Amazon.com: Buy the book in hardcover or paperback.
This poem originally appeared in:
Lochhead, Liz. The Grimm Sisters. London: Next Editions (In Association with Faber & Faber), 1981.
Mandel, Eli W. "Rapunzel." Disenchantments: An Anthology of Modern Fairy Tale Poetry. Wolfgang Mieder, ed. Hanover, NH: University Press of New England, 1985.
Amazon.com: Buy the book in hardcover or paperback.
Meyer, Gerard Previn. "Rapunzel Song." Disenchantments: An Anthology of Modern Fairy Tale Poetry. Wolfgang Mieder, ed. Hanover, NH: University Press of New England, 1985.
Amazon.com: Buy the book in hardcover or paperback.
Morris, William. "Rapunzel." The Defence of Guenevere and Other Poems. London: Ellis & White, 1858, 1875.
Read the poem on this site at Rapunzel .
Nash, Ogden. "Rapunzel, Rapunzel, Let’s Let Down Our Hair." Verses from 1929 On. New York: Random House, 1959.
Amazon.com: Buy the book in hardcover or paperback.
Sajé, Natasha. "Rampion." The Poets' Grimm: 20th Century Poems from Grimm Fairy Tales. Jeanne Marie Beaumont and Claudia Carlson, editors. Ashland, OR: Story Line Press, 2003. p. 111.
Amazon.com: Buy the book in paperback.
Sansom, Clive. "The Prince's Song." Return to Magic. London: Leslie Frewin, 1969.
Amazon.com: Buy the book in hardcover.
Sexton, Anne. "Rapunzel." Transformations. Houghton Mifflin Co., 1979.
Amazon.com: Buy the book in hardcover or paperback.
This poem is available online through Plagiarist.com at Rapunzel by Anne Sexton.
Spaar, Lisa Russ. "Rapunzel Shorn." The Poets' Grimm: 20th Century Poems from Grimm Fairy Tales. Jeanne Marie Beaumont and Claudia Carlson, editors. Ashland, OR: Story Line Press, 2003. p. 74.
Amazon.com: Buy the book in paperback.
Spaar, Lisa Russ. "Rapunzel Shorn." Glass Town. Granada Hills, CA: Red Hen Press, 1999.
Amazon.com: Buy the book in paperback.
Spaar, Lisa Russ. "Rapunzel's Clock." The Poets' Grimm: 20th Century Poems from Grimm Fairy Tales. Jeanne Marie Beaumont and Claudia Carlson, editors.Ashland, OR: Story Line Press, 2003. p. 112.
Amazon.com: Buy the book in paperback.
Spaar, Lisa Russ. "Rapunzel's Clock." Glass Town. Granada Hills, CA: Red Hen Press, 1999.
Amazon.com: Buy the book in paperback.
Strauss, Gwen. "The Prince." Trail of Stones. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1990.
Amazon.com: Buy the book in hardcover or paperback.
Also available in:
Strauss, Gwen. "The Prince." The Poets' Grimm: 20th Century Poems from Grimm Fairy Tales. Jeanne Marie Beaumont and Claudia Carlson, editors. Ashland, OR: Story Line Press, 2003. p. 75.
Amazon.com: Buy the book in paperback.
Tate, Allen. "The Ivory Tower." Collected Poems, 1919–1976.Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 1989.
Terrone, Maria. "Rapunzel: A Modern Tale." The Poets' Grimm: 20th Century Poems from Grimm Fairy Tales.Jeanne Marie Beaumont and Claudia Carlson, editors. Ashland, OR: Story Line Press, 2003. p. 193.
Amazon.com: Buy the book in paperback.
Trinidad, David. "Rapunzel." The Poets' Grimm: 20th Century Poems from Grimm Fairy Tales. Jeanne Marie Beaumont and Claudia Carlson, editors. Ashland, OR: Story Line Press, 2003. p. 73.
Amazon.com: Buy the book in paperback.
Untermeyer, Louis. "Rapunzel." The New Adam. New York: Harcourt, Brace and Howe, 1920.
Also available in:
Untermeyer, Louis. "Rapunzel." Disenchantments: An Anthology of Modern Fairy Tale Poetry. Wolfgang Mieder, ed. Hanover, NH: University Press of New England, 1985.
Amazon.com: Buy the book in hardcover or paperback.
Read the poem on this site at Rapunzel by Louis Untermeyer.
Vande Velde, Vivian. "And Now A Word From Our Sponsor."Tales From the Brothers Grimm and the Sisters Weird. San Diego, CA: Harcourt Brace, 1995.
Amazon.com: Buy the book in hardcover or paperback.
Viorst, Judith. "...And After Many Years, A Brave Prince Came At Last To Rescue the Princess." If I Were in Charge of the World and Other Worries: Poems for Children and their Parents. New York: Atheneum, 1981.
Amazon.com: Buy the book in hardcover or paperback.
Yolen, Jane. "The Golden Stair." The Faery Flag: Stories and Poems of Fantasy and the Supernatural. New York: Orchard, 1989.
Amazon.com: Buy the book in hardcover.
Williams-Noren, Carolyn. "Rapunzel’s Mother." In Literary Mama: A Literary Magazine for the Maternally Inclined.Online. Available: http://www.literarymama.com/poetry/archives/
001236.html. [26 March 2007].
Also see Rapunzel on the Folklore and Fairy Tale Music page.
I have listed primarily classical compositions of music using the themes of this fairy tale in either ballet, opera or some other musical style. I have also provided links to popular recordings of the music when available at Amazon.com. The advantage to these links is that you can listen to samples of the music at no charge.
Harrison, Lou. Rapunzel: An Opera in Six Acts.
Title: Rapunzel: An Opera in Six Acts
Conductor: Nicole A. Paiement
Performers: Susan C. Brown, John Duykers, et al
Orchestra: Ensemble Parallele
Label: New Albion Records
Year: 1952
Amazon.com: Buy the CD.
Download the CD.
From the Black Mountain College period (1951-1953) date the quartet Songs in the Forest as well as the opera Rapunzel. Rapunzel's six scenes were the product of an intensive effort over a period of less than three months from August to October 1952, although the subsequent orchestration required his efforts well into the following year. Based on a psychological reinterpretation of the old fairy tale by the 19th century English poet William Morris, the work is set for chamber orchestra and three solo singers who declaim in serial language that is at once jagged and lyric. Harrison describes the opera as "in part self-analysis," holding "implicit in it some of the problems, tortures, and false rapture that I was myself experiencing in analysis and psychotherapy." In 1954 the Air from Rapunzel (Act 3) won a Twentieth Century Masterpiece Award for the best composition for voice and chamber orchestra at the International Conference of Contemporary Music in Rome.
Song Title: Rapunzel
Artist: Dave Matthews Band
Genre: Rock
Label: RCA
Original Release Date: 1998 on Before These Crowded Streets
Amazon.com: Buy the CD.
Download the song or the CD.
The song appears on the following three Dave Matthews Band CDs to date:
Before These Crowded Streets [1998]
Listener Supported [1999]
Live in Chicago 12-19-98 at the United Center [2001]
Stephen Sondheim. Into The Woods.
In 1986, Into the Woods hit Broadway and enjoyed great success. The musical incorporates many fairy tale characters and plots including Sleeping Beauty. I have included the Broadway and London casts' recordings below. An excellent site about this musical is at Into the Woods.
Title: Into the Woods--Original Cast Recording
Performers: Bernadette Peters, Robert Westenberg, Joanna Gleason, Chip Zien, Tom Aldredge.
Amazon.com: Buy the CD.
Download the CD.
Title: Into the Woods--London Cast Recording
Performers: Imelda Staunton, Julia McKenzie, Nicolas Parsons, Jacqueline Dankworth, Clive Carter.
Amazon.com: Buy the CD.
Rapunzel (1951). Ray Harryhausen, director.
Amazon.com: Buy it on DVD.
ANIMATION SHORT: Rapunzel through the eyes of Ray Harryhausen.
The Extreme Fairy Tales DVD features these shorts:
1. The Emperor's Nightingale (1948, Directed by Jirí Trnka and Milos Makovec)
2. The Brementown Musicians (1935, Directed by Ub Iwerks)
3. Tom Thumb (1936, Directed by Ub Iwerks)
4. Mary's Little Lamb (1935, Directed by Ub Iwerks)
5. Rapunzel (1951, Directed by Ray Harryhausen)
Fractured Fairy Tales: Rapunzel (1959-60) (TV). In Rocky and Bullwinkle. Jay Ward Productions.
Amazon.com: Buy it on DVD.
ANIMATION SHORT: The Fractured Fairy Tales segment became a popular part of the first season of the Rocky and Bullwinkle Show (known under various names through the years) that premiered in the fall of 1959. They have remained in syndication ever since. Rapunzel originally aired in Episode 1 of Season 1.
Rapunzel (1979). Tom Davenport, director. Davenport Films Production.
Amazon.com: Buy it on DVD or VHS.
Davenport Films, an independent film company, has a wonderful short film titled Rapunzel, Rapunzel. This is the same film company that produced Willa: An American Snow White which has appeared on PBS. Please follow these links or click on a photo still to visit their website and learn more about this film. These movies are some of the best renditions of folklore on film.
Shelley Duvall's Faerie Tale Theatre: Rapunzel (1983) (TV). Gilbert Cates, director.
Amazon.com: Buy the series on DVD.
Cast:
Gena Rowlands ... Witch
Jeff Bridges ... Prince
Shelley Duvall ... Rapunzel / Mother
This television series originally aired on Showtime for six seasons and a total of 27 episodes. To see a full episode list, go to Shelley Duvall's Faerie Tale Theatre.
Into the Woods (1991) (TV). James Lapine, director.
Amazon.com: Buy it on VHS or DVD.
Cast:
Bernadette Peters .... The Witch
Chip Zien .... Baker
Joanna Gleason .... Baker's wife
Tom Aldredge .... Narrator/Mysterious Man
Robert Westenberg .... Wolf/Cinderella's Prince
Kim Crosby .... Cinderella
Danielle Ferland .... Little Red Riding Hood
Ben Wright .... Jack
Barbara Bryne .... Jack's mother
Merle Louise .... Grandmother/Cinderella's Mother/Giant
Chuck Wagner .... Rapunzel's Prince
Pamela Winslow .... Rapunzel
FILM OF ORIGINAL BROADWAY CAST PRODUCTION: A baker and his wife journey into the woods in search of a cow, a red cape, a pair of golden slippers and some magic beans to lift a curse that has kept them childless. Tony Award winners Bernadette Peters, Joanna Gleason and the rest of the original Broadway cast weave their magic spell over you in Stephen Sondheim's masterpiece, directed by James Lapine, a seamless fusion of fairy tale characters and what happens after "happily ever after." With oft-recorded songs such as "Children Will Listen," "No One is Alone," and "Into the Woods" is a music lover's delight from start to finish--and will forever cement Stephen Sondheim's unparalleled position as the giant of the American musical theater.
The 10th Kingdom (2000) (TV). David Carson and Herbert Wise, directors.
Amazon.com: Buy it on VHS or DVD.
Cast:
Kimberly Williams .... Virginia Lewis
Scott Cohen .... Wolf
John Larroquette .... Antony 'Tony' Lewis
Dianne Wiest .... The Evil Queen/Christine Lewis
Camryn Manheim .... Snow White
Ann-Margret .... Queen Cinderella
This epic 10-hour miniseries was a ratings bust on television Kimberly Williams is Virginia, a waitress who still lives with her janitor father (John Larroquette) and yearns for something exciting to happen to her. Her wish comes true when she and her father are transported from New York City into the nine kingdoms populated by characters from fairy tales of yore. They team up with a dog who's really a prince--Wendell, grandson of Snow White--changed into canine form by the evil Queen (Dianne Wiest), who plots to usurp Wendell's throne. Father, daughter, and his royal dogness are relentlessly pursued through the nine kingdoms by the Troll King (Ed O'Neill) and his three bumbling and horrible children, and the conflicted Wolf (Scott Cohen), who is allied with the Queen but tames his inner beast and falls in love with Virginia. The 10th Kingdom is a special effects extravaganza. There is indeed, as one character marvels, magic to behold here. But despite the Hallmark brand name and the presence of a grown-up Snow White (Camryn Manheim) and Cinderella (Ann-Margret), bewitched animals, magic mirrors, and trolls, this is not kid's stuff. It can get scary, surprisingly violent, and quite intense; you know, just like real fairy tales.
Rapunzel (2007/8). Ed Roe, writer. Hat Trick/BBC Northern Ireland Production for BBC One.
The first fairy tale in the BBC Fairy Tales anthology is Rapunzel, updated by Ed Roe (Smack The Pony, Teachers, No Angels). The original fairy tale told the story of a girl with incredibly long hair, thought to be based on the legend of Saint Barbara, who was locked in a tower by her father and was made famous by the Brothers Grimm, who coined the catchphrase 'Rapunzel, Rapunzel, let down your hair'.
"For me the real challenge was trying to find a modern equivalent for the story," says writer Ed Roe. "With fairy tales, you're operating in a world of fantasy, where the drama is externalised and where the characters are generally iconic and uncomplicated, with clearly defined goals and moral positions."
"On a structural level Rapunzel, is a fairly small, intimate drama with a love triangle at its core, and love triangles are pretty much the basis of everything I write," continues Ed.
Ed's updated Rapunzel is set in the competitive world of tennis and tells the story of a failing male tennis player, Jimmy Stojkovic (Lee Ingleby). Jimmy is persuaded by his errant father, Sava (Shaun Williamson) to disguise himself as a woman in a final attempt to win the grand slam tennis final.
Ed continues: "The main character, Jimmy, is a guy who is struggling to be the hero, he constantly falls short of his own and everyone else's expectations of what it is to be a man. This sense of inadequacy, of not being the prince he feels he should be, disables him."
The plan goes awry when Jimmy falls in love with the beautiful reigning champion, Billy Jane Brooke (Charity Wakefield) much to the horror of her over protective mother (Geraldine James).
As to the enduring appeal of fairy tales, Ed adds: "I guess they appeal to the side of us that yearns for a sense of order to the world. As we grow up, we all lose a conviction that good will triumph over bad and gradually come to realise that we're not destined for a happy ending. Indulging in a fairy tale allows us briefly to recapture that innocence."
Rapunzel (2009). Glen Keane, director. Walt Disney Productions. Working title has also been Rapunzel Unbraided.
Due out in June 2009, much speculation about the film can be found on the web.
Crane, David and Marta Kauffman. Rapunzel. Book and lyrics by David Crane and Marta Kauffman. Music by Michael Skloff. London: Josef Weinberger.
MUSICAL: A funny, pointed and tongue-in-cheek retelling of an old time favourite, Rapunzel does more than have fun with a classic mix of Prince, long-haired beauty and witch. This is a seriously funny tale of a possessive mother, a tentative Prince Charming and a strong-willed, but naïve, young girl, all of whom grow up in some surprising ways during the course of the show.
Everman, Mariah. Rapunzel Uncut. New York: Playscripts, Inc., 2000.
Read more about the play on the Playscripts, Inc. website.
SHORT PLAY: The story of Rapunzel told by dueling narrators, with a misunderstood witch, an off-pitch Rapunzel, and an unimaginably stupid Prince.
Gray, Nicholas Stuart. The Stone Cage. London: Dennis Dobson, 1963. [Currently available from London: Josef Weinberger, 1963. ]
FULL-LENGTH PLAY: Those of us familiar with the plight of Rapunzel will recognise the basic plot of this play for youngsters with imagination. We meet a procession of wildly improbable characters such as Tomlyn the cat, who has also been a prisoner of the wicked witch - Mother Gothel, the Raven, Nannygow, Gobbolin and a troll called Battypan. All are involved in the battle to save Rapunzel from an evil fate.
Lapine, James. Into the Woods. Music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim. Book by James Lapine. London: Josef Weinberger.
Amazon.com: Buy the book in paperback.
MUSICAL: A bewitching crew of classic characters romp through a "happily ever after" kingdom in this musical fairy-tale. Interweaving a hilarious mix of Cinderella, Little Red Riding Hood, the Baker's Wife, Jack and the Beanstalk and Rapunzel in a multi-layered plot which ends happily in Act One, the musical then explores "happily ever after" in Act Two as previous actions come home to roost - with a vengeance!
