Nora and I were thrilled to go see Emerald City’s (and adapter/director Ernie Nolan’s production of Alice in Wonderland at Emerald City Theatre last Saturday. (Trivia: Did you know that my very first starring role was of Alice, in 1989? True, unrelated story.) I love this story. I’ve always loved this story. And now, so does Nora.
This production (with its theme of problem solving) is lovely- there are hints of a 1920s radio hour and the feel is very Deco. The storyline is exactly the same as you remember it, which is totally a-ok. That said, there were definitely some elements that weren’t gelling so early in the show’s run; there were a couple of costumes that seemed wrinkled and askew, and I definitely worried for the Velcro on the back of the Caterpillar’s impressive body (which housed at least three other people.) A couple of props were marked with Sharpie, a la “recent thrift store purchase,” and a few of the actors’ British dialects faltered here and there.
However, the actors bring 110 percent, no mean feat in a children’s production on a Saturday morning. There’s some cool stuff going on with the Cheshire Cat and various set pieces. The audience participation is fun (and thrilling for the- ahem- Not Shy Preschooler On My Lap crowd). And Nora loved the pre-show project of creating and decorating her own tea cup.
At the post-show meet n’ greet, she was thrilled to [shyly] thank Alice and the Red Queen, and even hug The King of Hearts. This extroverted activity totally sapped her, so she politely asked me to high-five the Mad Hatter and the White Rabbit.
She- curiously- informed me that those two (as well as the March Hare) were “really naughty” and “not very kind.” Okie doke. (She also demanded to know “where the white bunny [kept] going!” This was repeated multiple times, frequently during scene changes.)
All in all, we had an excellent time at this sweet and entertaining show. (So did the completely packed house of- from what I could see- billions of costumed children.) It’s a fun time for your little [or not-so-little] adventurer. Go check it out for yourself.
And when you do- and figure out where the heck the White Rabbit kept going- please report back to Nora.
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| I swear, a second before this picture was taken, she was beaming at the King of Hearts. |
Alice in Wonderland
at the Apollo Theatre, Chicago
July 10th- December 29th, 2012
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