Alice in Wonderland

“Alice in Wonderland” by Andrew O’Leary was a witty and clever take on the Lewis Carroll classic, as Alice not only falls down the rabbit hole but also helps the people of Wonderland defeat the evil Queen.  With a rousing opening song of “Can’t stop the feeling” performed with gusto, we knew we were in for an evening of energy and fun.   We were thrown into Wonderland and the pace didn’t let up. 

The sets were excellent.  Modern technology was deployed to great effect by the use of a variety of highly appropriate and attractive back projections.  Thereby, maximum impact was created with minimum disruption and the pace of the production maintained.  At the flick of a switch we could allow our imaginations to run riot. The inventive and well-chosen props were well used by the cast. Many warrant special mention: the mushroom that lit up, the half cup of tea and of course the giant tea pot that got a good laugh when it came off the Hatter’s table!  

All the costumes were of the highest quality.   A lot of thought had gone into the use of costume, hair and make-up to emphasise the personality of each character and obvious attention to detail ensured that each character was easily recognisable.  The Queen’s costume and Alice’s traditional dress were bright and in keeping with the liveliness of the panto.   Tweedle Dum and Tweedle Dee, the King, The White Rabbit, the Hatter and the woodland animals were all depicted in well-chosen and presented costumes and make-up (with some spectacular tails!)

The lighting was well controlled.  The lighting throughout was imaginative and was particularly effective with the menacing red lights for “The Black Gates” section.

This production was funny, witty and entertaining.  There was a great variety of characters:  The White rabbit; very endearing as he hopped around, the larger than life Dame who had great rapport with the audience and the schoolgirls, particularly Sally Airey as a cheeky and charming Stella.  Emily-Rose Taylor is a great asset to the group as Jack and hers was a fully rounded performance.   She brought charisma to her role, as well as great singing (and dance moves). She was well matched with Georgia Sherwood as Alice.  Aurelie O’Sullivan provided some slightly surreal moments as the Hatter but was perfect in this role. The entire cast had great comic timing and kept the action going throughout the evening.  It was heart-warming to see the energy of the young woodland animals dancing about the stage and also to enjoy topical and local references from adult members of the cast.  The final musical number and the well-choreographed curtain calls were exemplary. Musicians Michael Wooldridge and Gareth Thompson provided spot on accompaniment and the cast hit all the right notes to send us all home smiling. Great credit is due to all those on the stage under Miranda Hughes’s direction and with Claire Lymer’s choreography and to those unseen members of the group who were surely working just as hard.

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