Alice in Wonderland

It’s been many years since I have seen a production by the Riverside Juniors and the overall improvement in standard is remarkable. The kids at Riverside have always been talented and enthusiastic, however I never felt that they were pushed to their full potential, that is until now. Whatever the changes are that have been made at Riverside, they bode extremely well for the future of the group and for the talent that they have showcased in this production of “Alice in Wonderland”.
The Front of House Team lead by Sarah Reed, were cheerful and very welcoming. There was a bustling busy foyer with plenty on sale from the usual programmes and raffle tickets to popcorn and pretty hair bows. All of this set up the atmosphere for what was to come.
The curtain opened to reveal an empty stage but with a back projection of a park area on a sunny summers day, and soon filled up with almost every member of cast to perform the opening number. I always think that if you don’t get the audience’s attention in the first three minutes, then you are on an uphill battle to get them onside for the rest of the show, this ensemble captured us instantly with their energy and pure joy in performance. The lighting was very well designed and executed throughout, as was the sound. The scenes were set with the use of back projection which worked well in low light but lost definition in bright light.The set consisted mostly of props that were colourfully designed by Andy Shaw. The many and varied costumes were beautifully put together by Lorraine Miles and worked extremely well. Laura Albone, Leanne Buckley and Chloe Patterson did a great job with the hair and makeup. Stage Manager Kim Clegg and team did a good job with a reasonably simple set, however there was a very long pause in blackout in Act 2 which to be fair may have been because of other issues, unfortunately it’s always the backstage crew that get the blame, so I will give them the benefit of the doubt.
We were treated to not one but three Alice’s in the form of Natasha Griffin, Isobel Ambrose and Isabelle Shaw who all sang and danced beautifully, but it was Isobel who carried most of the story as the lead Alice. Sarah Cobb was a very bossy older sister Mathilda and Megan Jones was the perfect White Rabbit. Once again we had not one but three Cheshire Cats all played very differently by Daniella Dickinson, Lucy Goldstone and Jessica Lightfoot. Abbie Jones was a cheeky doorknob and Isabella Moretto was almost unrecognisable beneath all the feathers as the Dodo Bird. Caitlin Noonan and Hannah Wilson displayed excellent timing and were very funny as Tweedledum and Tweedledee. Luca Moretto gave an energetic performance as the Mad Hatter and Esme Johnson was superb as the March Hare, very expressive and very funny. The King and Queen of Hearts played by Ewan Kendall and Willow Miles were a delightfully mismatched couple and Willow should be very proud of the fact that she received boo’s in the walk down for her portrayal of the evil Queen. Lily Horsler, Abbie Jones, Mabel Rodgers, Rosie Sedgwick and Emma Shepherd were as good as any girlband as the Girls of the Golden Afternoon, if you are going to form a band you may want to shorten the name a bit girls. James Rix was the coolest Caterpillar. The Chorus were seriously brilliant. Every single member of the ensemble made their mark on stage right down to the lowliest of the playing cards and were a pleasure to watch.
Joshua St Clair did an amazing job of direction. Every scene was bright and energetic and each performance was given with sincerity, hard enough to get from an adult cast but to get this level of performance from such young children is something to be proud of. I believe Josh has a real gift for working with youngsters and must do it again. Emily Wainwright’s musical direction was wonderful. I did struggle with some of the diction, and this was the same for the dialogue, but musically it was spot on. The Choreography by Ellen Tipping was imaginative and well thought out to enable every child to perform to the best of their ability.
This was a superb production by the Riverside Juniors. As well as the very talented cast, full credit must go to this amazing production team. Riverside Juniors are now not just a group of the highest standard in District 1 but in all of NODA East.  My congratulations go to all responsible for this most enjoyable production.

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