Alice in Wonderland

A traditional but Society-tailored pantomime, which contained all the elements required for audience participation and lots of laughs.

As there were two teams of children, I was able to attend two productions in the same day! 

I appreciate that it was difficult to stage this year using only backcloths, but all in all it worked well, and the whole was enhanced by some super lighting throughout.  I loved the lighting when Alice and co went into the rabbit hole and Push the Button had particularly imaginative lighting.  For me, the UV scene didn’t work as well this year.

I thought the choice of music was good, a mix of traditional and newer songs, all suited the cast well, and the band sounded good, they accompanied well and the singers did their songs justice.

Mostly the costumes were good, however I was a little perturbed at the lack of costumes in the opening number.

Make up was good, and I was especially impressed with the White Rabbit, Mad Hatter and Dormouse, all extremely good.

Both junior ensembles were first-rate – they performed really well, and gave us lots of smiles and really joined in with all the fun.

Olivia Lynn as the Princess of Hearts in the early show, gave us a nice performance with plenty of attitude, whilst Charlotte Dance who played the role in the later show, was a little bit more laid back in her approach.

Holli Wheeler was the Knave of Hearts, I needed a little more angst from her when she was found out, but I could see the characterisation she was aiming for.

Lucy Farrar gave a charming performance as Alice – a shame she didn’t have more to sing, as she has a lovely voice, which was evident in the Count on Me number, which I really enjoyed.  Overall a good portrayal, with plenty of facial expressions. 

I really liked Tweedledum and Tweedledee – Kyra Spratley and Molly Doherty respectively.  They were bright and lively, I particularly enjoyed their scene using the chocolate bars, it was slick and well done.

Luke Murphy, Bethany Ridout and Sharon Robinson made a good trio as the Mad Hatter, the March Hare and the Dormouse.  They all had very defined characters and kept to them throughout.  Bethany and Sharon especially gave us well-studied characterisations.

Martin Pursey-Nash and Cheryl Desborough were the King and Queen of Hearts, a very good duo, the bumbling King with his weird and wacky inventions, and the Queen with her sharp tongue, they played well off each other.

I loved Matt Collins costume, he was a very colourful Joker.  I liked his quick fire reactions to Mr Rules, played by Laurence Sims, who was a good contrasting figure - very good musically.

Michelle Arnold and Nico Bamford again created a contrasting duo as the Duchess and the Cook, they reacted well against each other and the other characters.

Maddy Till was a good Caterpillar, whilst Freya Spratley made a real impression as the Cheshire Cat, she performed well in the musical numbers, and kept her smiley persona well to the fore.

Anna Woods gave a good portrayal of the White Rabbit, she interacted well with the audience and the cast, showing a pleasing singing voice – very well done.

Nora Knowitall was performed with gusto by Peri Lynn, she stayed very upbeat the whole way through, a good foil to Alice and the other cast members. 

I liked the three other playing card Queens – Nina Burnett, Hannah Fehr and Jackie Houghton, they all performed well.

Overall, I felt the production was nicely choreographed, slightly lacking in confidence and energy from the cast, but showing promise.

I particularly liked the concept of the finale – it was nicely put together, and worked well, making it a little different to just a finale walkdown and bows, good to see the Directors using their imagination and creating something out of the ordinary.

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