The Shakespeare Studio's March Madness

The Shakespeare Studio presents:
Alice in Wonderland

The play took place at Autrey Mill, Summerour House. Characters were walking around and talking to people--it really felt like the audience was in Wonderland. In a creative endeavor, the scenes took place in different parts of the house and with the division of the audience in half, the scenes happened at the same time. There were three Alices, which was not confusing as you think it might be. One half of the audience started outside the house and Alice sleeping in front of a tree and the other half started in the backyard of the house with Tweedle-dee and Tweedle-Dum. With each scene, the audience would follow Alice through the house (and the Alices would switch off or see themselves running around--which added to the Wonderland feel) and the characters often spoke directly to the audience.

I started with sleeping Alice in front of the house, and I will say it was a very well done beginning. Sarah High was Alice in this scene and her innocence captured the audience when they saw her curled up next to the tree. We were all a bit confused when she told us to come through the gate and sit down, but we soon were used to moving around. The birds stole the next scene in the Pool of Tears with their caucus race--all of them were so bird like and hilarious--the duck, Frankie Webster, was so funny. Daniel Bryant as the Dodo was perfect--his bird character was perfect--I really can't pinpoint was so perfect.

Melissa Reynolds as the caterpillar stole the show--people LOVED her. Her caterpillar was so well done, people were not afraid to laugh. She refreshed old lines by approaching them differently.

The fro footman was cute--he made the most of his part. The Duchess--Courtney Emery--captured the audience's heart when she told us to enter the house (because it was a little chilly) and she was beautiful. We all of the sudden had a new Alice--Rachel High, Sarah's sister--in this scene. The scene was funny in subtle way, and the baby turning into a pig was very well done.

The chesire cat appeared next--Tori Bennett--whose smile was perfect for the role. She was funny when supposed to be and looked light on her feet like a creature. She was also perfect for the role.



The mad tea party followed. The characters were funny and the table was beautiful (they moved us outside to the courtyard for this). What stood out to me was that they rapped twinkle twinkle little bat--it was hilarious.



Tweedle-Dee and Tweedle-Dum appeared next. They joined us in the courtyard after Alice (Serena Mcracken, this time) showed us where to go. Dee and Dum were two girls-- a nice mix up from fat boys--who were funnier as girls, I believe. Audrey Clavijo and Erin Guresso NAILED IT in other words. Their scene was tight and really really really funny. They entertained. And played off the audience's reaction so naturally.

We were taken back into the house where Alice was playing croquet with the Queen. The red queen's face was scary, as it should be, but her presence was gentle.

The mock turtle and the gryphon sang and danced--a mix up for the audience--and the mock turtle's jokes were the funniest to modern day humor.

The trial was visually pleasing with all the characters in front of us, but a bit anticlimactic. The end is done well with everyone twirling around Alice shouting OFF WITH HER HEAD and then leaving the room.

The perfect ending of this show is that Alice pulls a Ferris Bueller--she asks why the audience is still here--the show is over.

All three of the girls who played Alice were beautiful and perfect--they had the innocence and the playfulness that Alice has in the book. Their diction was perfect--I understood every word that came out of their mouths and was interested in what they had to say. Their ability to work together was genius. They didn't try to out-do each other, but glued together and learned from each other to create Alice.



The costumes were beautiful and the creatures masks were wonderful. The lighting of the house and the set was so creative and interesting. Pink and green lit up the front of the house while the inside of the old house lit up in a very real way.

However, the whole production seemed unorganized. All the actors seemed a bit flustered and the audience was completely confused. The show was sold out and often there was no place to sit. Of course, it was opening night.

The shows were sold out every night if the run--moral of the story: people like to watch what they know. Running a theatre means catering to the audience.