circleLewis Carroll’s classic children’s book is difficult to stage, with more incident than drama; the fun logic games of the novel can feel haphazard when performed, and Alice can come across as overly passive, the helpless center of a chaotic world.
Playwright Andrew Pollard’s solution for Duke’s annual promenade around Williamson Park was to portray Alice as a modern-day Cinderella. Played with charm and determination by Eve Pereira, Alice is bullied in equal measure by teachers and classmates while setting off on a school camping trip. The story’s plot is to give Alice the status she deserves.
The story begins with her only good-hearted friend, Lewis (Ross Telfer), going missing either in a forest storm or an attack by the Jabberwock. Alice’s attempts to rescue him upon entering Wonderland give some structure to the procession of caterpillars, turtles and dormice that appear before her. Digressions abound, but at least she has a purpose.
Guided by the neurotic White Rabbit (Rebecca Fithian), we visit the Duchess’s cafe and the Mad Hatter’s tea party. Ashton MemorialSet in the opulent home of the Queen of Hearts (Helen Longworth), Kirsty Davies’s production is bombastic and hilarious, with little actually being funny, and accompanied by a catchy ’60s-influenced tune by Steven Markwick, the cast is having a great time, doing some quirky dance moves.
As is often the case with these shows, there are some long wait times and a tendency to force indoor theatrical technique onto the outdoor space, but lively performances from the versatile Katie Ball and Keira Hayes, and the bold colors and black-and-white stripes of Jessica Curtis’ costume design, make this a breezy show for summer.
