Alice in Thunderland

When I arrived at MADS theatre to watch Alice in Wonderland, the stage was simply set with a black box style stage with large printed playing cards dressing the front of the stage which gives an obvious clue as to the theme of the show. 

It is always a treat to see an original piece of theatre.  This show was conceived by Nicola Jay Crooks who also served as MD and Director and she wrote the script to be a full length musical which I think is a challenge for a youth group.  The show is a variation of Alice in Wonderland (the clue was in the title), and features rock music from a variety of groups including Queen, AC/DC, Journey and others.   

The cast featured young performers ranging from age 5 right the way up to 18.  There were four performers playing Alice, with differentiation in the names such as Alice, Other Alice, Tall Alice and Small Alice.  As they were all in identical wigs, and identical costumes, identifying each one was something of a challenge, however, thankfully they all managed their roles with a dedication and aplomb which was impressive, particular with the younger performers.  The vocals were confident, and the dialogue delivery was well timed. 

There were lots of very polished performances from the people on the stage which was nice to see.  As in most shows, there were occasional lapses in volume and occasional missed lines.  As a side note, it may be worth spending some time on stage craft including getting the younger performers to face stage front rather than positioning themselves to look towards the wings.  This I am sure will come with time and more experience on stage. 

Eliza Rowland as the White Rabbit was very charismatic delivering excellent vocals and interacting particularly well with Alice.  Ace Tucker as the Mad Hatter portrayed the character with suitable insanity and was a confident performer, well done.  

Creatively, I enjoyed the Caterpillar which was made up of several different people forming one individual creature.  The repetition of the dialogue was an excellent directorial decision, allowing each person to make their contribution to the ‘hippie’ styled caterpillar. 

The musical numbers were all confident and well sung and well danced.  Congratulations to the choreographers for managing the large number of people on the stage and getting those performances out of them.  My  favourite number was One Vision, which was a highlight for me.  I think going forward some consideration as to whether songs are suitable for younger people to perform however this was a small issue for me.   

I thoroughly enjoyed Alice in Thunderland and I look forward to seeing what is next from this very creative and talented group.  Well done. 

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