Jade Douris-O'Hara as Alice and Zach Colangelo as the Cheshire Cat. Photo by Stoo Metz.
As the sun was continuing to set last night in the heart of Point Pleasant Park after Shakespeare By the Sea’s production of Alice in Wonderland a young child seated behind me began to chant, “Queen of Hearts! Queen of Hearts!” while another ran off in search of the Cheshire Cat. At intermission there was a ten minute long line filled with enthusiastic children (and some grownups) for selfies with the aforementioned cat and with Alice. To me, this all speaks much more resonantly than I can about how much families are enjoying Alice in Wonderland at the park this summer.
This adaption of the classic novel by Lewis Carroll was first devised by the 2012 company of Shakespeare By the Sea and has music and lyrics by Jeremy Hutton. It tells the story of a young girl named Alice who follows a curious White Rabbit down a rabbit hole and into a magic realm where she encounters a number of silly and strange characters, including a heartless Queen of Hearts, who rules absolutely over her subjects enforcing one essential rule: there can only be one winner in games or contests, and it must be her. When Alice arrives she immediately starts stirring up trouble by seeking to break this rule, and she makes an enemy of the Queen, who seeks to destroy her via croquet, or by any means necessary (even if this requires her to stir up old memories of a past love named Brian- the one who made off with her heart in the first place). While the core script dates back to 2012, it seems like this cast has also added and changed some dialogue to make the story feel fresh and also so each of the company members are playing to their own strengths and senses of humour.
Jeremy Hutton has written a fun and eclectic musical score featuring songs written in various musical styles, including a barbershop quartet of playing cards, a Hip Hop tea party, and more mainstream musical theatre numbers that oscillate between jazz/blues and pop. The lyrics meld perfectly into the self-referential pantomime tone of the rest of the show, both poking loving fun at the source material while also rooting the story very much in the contemporary time. Zach Colangelo, who plays the Cheshire Cat and Dormouse and who I think has amassed their own Haligonian fandom over the last two summers, adds glorious pop riffs peppered throughout for additional ornamentation. Other standout numbers are The Queen of Hearts’ “Off With Their Heads” song, the rollicking Caucus Race song, which features choreography by Jade Douris-O’Hara, and, my favourite, the darkly funny song where Alice is told that all her friends are (probably) dead.
Unfortunately, I missed seeing Raeesa Lalani last night as Margaret/Tweedle Dee (I hope she feels better soon!), but it was impressive to see Drew Douris-O’Hara step in as an emergency understudy with very little preparation (although he has been in previous productions of Alice, and directed a student production of it two years ago at the Shakespeare By the Sea Studio; he has never played these parts and wasn’t involved at all with this revival until tonight). Theatre magic! He and Daniel Nwobi (Tweedle Dum) are very sweet together as the dimwitted, but also childlike Tweedles. Jade Douris-O’Hara plays Alice, who is an interesting mix of ingenue and provocateur. While she spends quite a bit of the play being puzzled and contrite about the mess she has made, she also has a competitive edge and a twinkle of power lust, which makes her a worthy opponent for the Queen. Zach Colangelo plays an acerbic Dormouse who keeps falling asleep, and also the Cheshire Cat, really a Wonderland equivalent to her character Feste in Twelfth Night, who seeks to help guide Alice through riddles and a little bit of harsh- but well meant- judgement. Chris George plays The Mad Hatter and Matt Lacas plays The March Hare, both zany and ridiculous in all the best ways. I really enjoyed Patrick Jeffrey’s White Rabbit, who works as second in command to the Queen, and seems to be both terrified of her, but also in awe of her strength and her power. Their relationship with one another, and then the Rabbit’s relationship with the other characters as someone acting as proxy to power, is quite nuanced at times and portrays a real truth, I think, that we see often in our societies. I felt genuine pathos for the Rabbit when he was asked to sacrifice his Teddy Bear for the benefit of his position within the monarchy. His hopping is also utterly delightful. As the child who was chanting behind me as the show ended suggests Amaka Umeh’s Queen of Hearts is a villain to fall in love with. Umeh has such a perfect mixture of both formidable power, they never shrink even when it seems there might be a revolt in their midst, and absolute silliness. There is a joke in the play about dignity, but there is something inherently dignified in the Queen, which is why no matter how hilarious their dance moves, how incessant their puns, how ridiculous the Brian storyline is, their role as monarch in Wonderland always feels unwavering.
Téa Stewart has brought a lot of creativity to the costumes. I especially enjoyed Alice’s ruffled blue shorts and white blouse- a nod to her iconic blue dress, but one that better suits this Alice’s agent of chaos motif. Zach Colangelo’s Dormouse literally becomes the Tea Party, as they wear a table filled with a full plastic tea set around their waist. This really highlights the theme of imagination and brings in a visual of a contemporary child’s playroom. The Cheshire Cat’s hot pink dress is glorious, and I liked that the Queen is wearing a sort of sailor dress, but, similar to Alice, she also has pants on underneath (red, of course). There is also some beautiful magic associated with the Cheshire Cat achieved with umbrellas, which brings the scene in the Disney film where the cat turns into just their gigantic smile to vivid life in a remarkably simple way.
Jesse MacLean leans into the silliness in other ways while figuring out how to have Alice and the White Rabbit fall down a rabbit hole, and also how to make Alice both grow and shrink back down, and to cry a pool of tears that the Dormouse can swim in. This also roots us in the world of child’s play, where our imaginations fill in whatever blanks the special effects budget doesn’t cover.
I don’t know why this is and it’s been the bane of my existence for years, but there isn’t a lot of professional theatre for children under ten (and especially those under five) in Halifax throughout the year, but it is Shakespeare By the Sea’s family shows like Alice in Wonderland that have been a real mainstay for family audiences every summer for over a decade, and it’s not hard to see why. The kids (and toddlers!) are lining up at intermission to meet their favourite actors like Point Pleasant Park is Disney World. As much as this show is entertaining for the grownups like me, it was made, with love, for the kids. When you hear them giggling and screaming out at random trying to help move the plot along, and you see them sitting rapt at the edge of their seats for 80 minutes *nary an iPad in sight*: Shakespeare By the Sea is doing the proverbial Lord’s work, they’re raising the next generation of theatre audiences.
Shakespeare By the Sea’s production of Alice in Wonderland plays at the Cambridge Battery inside Point Pleasant Park (5530 Point Pleasant Drive, Halifax) at 7:00pm on the following days:
August 18th, August 21, August 23, August 25, August 27, August 29, and August 31.
Tickets are available on a sliding scale from PWYC to $50.00. $50.00 tickets include front row centre seats, all other seating that includes chairs costs $30.00, and the PWYC pricing allows you to sit where you would like in the Cambridge Battery and you can bring your own chair. Tickets are available HERE, or at the door the day of the show.
Shakespeare By the Sea is wheelchair accessible and anyone with accessibility needs can book a ride from the upper parking lot in Point Pleasant Park to the Cambridge Battery venue. Dogs are welcome, and all performances are Relaxed Performances. For more information about accessibility please visit this website or call 902.422.0295 for more information.
