ALICE@WONDERLAND
Down the Rabbit Hole
On the 2nd and 3rd of November, 2018 the students of Elizabeth
Moir School performed a contemporary version of Alice
@ Wonderland by Jonathan Yukich, at the Lionel Wendt Theatre. This modern version of the Lewis Caroll classic takes place in the 21st century, where Alice is a typical tech savvy teenager who tumbles into the mad world of Wonderland. The show had a rotating cast of almost 60 students, directed by Anushka Senanayake, and a great deal of dancing, choreographed by Melissa Fisher.
The show begins with Alice praising her new phone when the White Rabbit passes by. Unamused by the talking, frazzled rabbit, Alice asks the White Rabbit to keep it down a notch. Realising her phone battery is about to die, she follows the White Rabbit into the rabbit hole, in search of a charger. Alice then finds herself in the Hall of Strange Doors, where she is guided by the snarky Little Door to eat and drink the treats and portions, which magically appear, in order to reach the key which unlocks the door to Wonderland.
Alice arrives in a forest where she meets with an audience favourite, the Caterpillar. In seeing this sassy, teenage Caterpillar rolling up onto the stage on her giant mushroom, while smoking a hookah, the audience went wild! Alice connects with the Caterpillar as they are both awaiting another stage in their lives; Alice is a teenage girl on the verge of womanhood and the Caterpillar awaiting her transformation into being a butterfly. Alice then moves on in search of a charger and meets a Toad and Fish selling newspapers, priced two flies or worms respectively. She then continues her walk through Wonderland, when she bumps into the White Rabbit again. The White Rabbit, who is in a mighty rush, was terrified as the Queen was to soon play croquet. The then appears out of nowhere, and explains to Alice that everyone in Wonderland is mad and then gives her directions to the garden. The illusion of the appearing and disappearing Cheshire Cat, was masterfully created with the puppet work of two students along with the accompanying hypnotic sounds, lights and sets.
On her way looking for the garden, Alice then encounters all other classic characters of Wonderland, whom she confuses and fascinates with her alien words and technology.
First, she joins a tea party with the Mad
Hatter, March Hare and Dormouse and afterwards, meets Tweedle Dee and Tweedle
Dum, who run off frightened by the breaking storm and nearing Jabberwocky.later she meets Humpy Dumpty, who falls off the wall and finally, she finds the garden by listening for the flowers’ laughter to guide her. Alice then continues into the garden where she finds the harsh, unforgiving and all-mighty
Queen of Hearts, wanting to play croquet but unable to do so due to the rain. Furious, the Queen then orders her Army of Cards to behead Alice instead. The kind, thoughtful yet, loyal King of Hearts attempts to convince his Queen not to, but is rudely overruled.
A trial is then conducted by the White Rabbit, calling the Mad Hatter, March Hare, Dormouse, Tweedle Dee, Tweedle Dum and flowers to the witness box, wherein they each accuse Alice of having ill-treated them. The Mad Hatter’s pompous character is gutsy enough to bring his own cup of tea into the witness box where he, the March Hare and the Dormouse state that Alice joined their tea party uninvited and then offended the Dormouse. The female, melodramatic, porcelain- doll-like Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum, accuse Alice of making them dance to their near death. The flowers, Rose, Lilly Violet and Daisy, state that Alice threatened to pluck them if they did not end their shrill voiced, petty argument. It is then clear that the Queen has all the evidence necessary to proceed with Alice’s beheading when suddenly, Alice’s phone rings and she awakes back in her own reality.
The changing of scenes was done by beautiful and haunting dance sequences after which, the dancers sometimes turned into live props in the subsequent scene. The sound and light effects were timed and executed brilliantly in order to communicate the varying moods of Wonderland. A lot of thought had very clearly gone into the beautiful costumes andcreative sets, while the chosen contemporary script definitely made the audience see the resemblance of the mad world we live in and that of Wonderland. Each character,with their unique quirks, was able to connect with the audience and keep them entertained throughout the show! It was definitely an unforeseen level of precision, skill and raw talent that was displayed. This amazed the audience as it was after all, performed by amateur dramatists, who are still in school!