There would be no "happily ever after" for Cinderella without her glitzy glass slippers, so careful attention was paid to the shoes for the princess-to-be's Broadway opening last weekend.

This image released by Stuart Weitzman shows the reknown shoe designer Stuart Weitzman holding a pair of glass slippers that will be worn by actress Laura Osnes in the title role of the Broadway musical, "Rodgers and Hammerstein's Cinderella on Broadway." Weitzman knows how to make shoes that make a splash. For years, he made the “million-dollar Oscar shoes,” diamond-covered footwear that a celebrity would wear to the Academy Awards. He employed a welded-construction technique that uses no screws so that Cinderella could have a seamless look. (AP Photo/Stuart Weitzman )

For "Rodgers + Hammerstein's Cinderella," which officially opened Sunday at the Broadway Theatre, costume designer William Ivey Long and footwear designer Stuart Weitzman created a pair of pumps so sparkly they "light up the upper balcony," Weitzman says.

"The shoe is its own character in the show, and it will inspire the dream for so many other women."

Shoe shopaholics and Carrie Bradshaw types surely have been inspired by the Cinderella fashion fantasy, muses Weitzman, a 26-year industry veteran. How could they not? After all, he says, Cinderella gets the shoes — flattering, delicate and powerful all at once — and then gets her Prince Charming.

When people describe the stunning bride or the prettiest red-carpet starlet, the comparison rarely — if ever — is made to Sleeping Beauty or Snow White.

It's always Cinderella, belle of the ball.

"Cinderella is the gold standard for aspiration," agrees Long. "The slippers are so iconic, and they are recognized worldwide."

He says their only rival might be Dorothy's red ruby slippers in "The Wizard of Oz."

Because the shoes are so famous, the designers had to work with a certain set of expectations: The shoes had to be romantic and sexy, have a sparkly fairy-dust touch — and they had to be seen by everyone in the theater.

Actress Laura Osnes, who plays Cinderella, couldn't risk shards and splinters from real glass, so the designers used Plexiglas instead.

Weitzman employed a welded-construction technique that uses no screws, normally used in high heels, so Cinderella could have a seamless look.

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