ALICE IN STUNNED-ERLAND
Lewis Carroll sure never saw this version coming. His 1865 novel Alice In Wonderland, probably best known from the 1951 Disney animated film, has been reinterpreted time and again. This rocking musical version (with music by Duncan Sheik, lyrics by Steven Slater, and book by Slater and Jessie Nelson) reworks the original storyline far more than most, yielding an exciting new event that is more inspired by the classic tale than just telling it.
In 1941 London, a young woman named Alice Spencer (Esmé Birdorf) has read Carroll’s book so many times that she knows it “by heart.” She and her best friend Alfred (Kyler Waitley) are among many hiding in the underground tube station during the Nazi bombings of their city. On top of the chaos of the blitz, there is a tuberculosis outbreak and Alfred is among the dying. Not wanting her friend to suffer or be alone, Alice rushes to his side to distract him with readings from her favorite book. Enraged at Alice for breaking the command not to get close to someone so infectious, a nurse in the station (Nora Benitez) rips her book up. Alice defiantly declares that she knows the story verbatim and will not be stopped from taking Alfred on a mental journey with her down the rabbit hole to distract him from his pain.
We are taken to Wonderland, where Alfred becomes the rabbit who, as in the novel, keeps saying that it’s late (a parallel for Alfred, himself, as he grows weaker). The crux of the story is that, so long as Alice can keep him in Wonderland, time cannot catch him and they can be together. But Alfred/Rabbit knows that this is an illusion that cannot be maintained despite Alice clinging to it. During her time down the hole, she meets all the usual suspects from the novel (most of whom are variations on people she knew in the underground, a la The Wizard of Oz) but the famed version of Alice’s story is constantly being merged with that of Alice Spencer and her struggle facing her grief.
More than the storytelling, Wildsong’s production is a visual feast. So much is happening with all the characters singing − frequently overlapping and in chorus − that there’s no divorcing the show’s stage direction from the choreography, except to say that director Leigh Scarritt and choreographer Brooke Aliceon have produced something that works seamlessly between their efforts. Actors are moving up and down, through the air, at just every conceivable angle on their crowded tiny stage. Ms. Aliceon creates a wonderful illusion of Alice going down the rabbit hole using the bodies and movement of the troupe. And then, in contrast to so much motion, in a scene where we see Alice and Alfred at three different ages (with help from the young Lola Anderson, Kaylee Rankin, Cooper Kristler, and Tavin Adam as their alter egos) we suddenly slow down to view something remarkably simple and tender. Throw in Erik Ramirez and Aliceon’s costuming (precise on the Queen of Hearts and symbolic on the Jabberwocky) and the delight continues.
Ms. Birdorf captures the lost desperation of Alice beautifully, especially in her sweetest song, “Another Room in Your Head”:
“What will you do when I’m not here with you
And you sit here and you’re not with me?…
Will I still sleep in some part of your mind
In some way I may never know?”
The standout performance of the night goes to Nora Benitez in her second and larger role as the Queen, commanding the stage with her song, “Isn’t It a Trial?” and her humorous reduction of her henpecked husband (Odie Hymas) to a mere toady. Deliciously creepy in delivery and syncopation are August Quini and Kannon Gowen as the two halves of the Caterpillar. Robert Bednar is beguiling as the Mad Hatter; Sara Blanche-Hayes holds nothing back in her haughtiness as the Duchess; and, in case she needed yet another way to contribute, Ms. Aliceon charms us with her good intentions and naughty smiles as the Cheshire Cat. There are strong performances all over the place, but the bottom line is that Ms. Scarritt has brought together a tight ensemble whose combined energy outshines any one performance.
Regular readers will now brace themselves for my usual complaint about Wildsong’s difficulty with sound. It is a pleasure on this occasion to say that this was rarely the case here (“Huzzah!” cries Ms. Aliceon!). Whether it was the nature of Sheik’s music, a little less volume than usual on the recordings, or the right matching of voices and projection, the sounds system was, happily, not the bugaboo that it so often is at the erstwhile Ocean Beach Playhouse.
Most people are familiar with Alice in Wonderland, but, if not, you should familiarize yourself with the classic story before seeing this rock-and-roll retelling. My theater buddy loved watching the story being shown this new light; this critic, however, was a bit lost. Upon perusing a synopsis at intermission, all that had played out in Act I fell into place and Act II was a pleasure. This is not a critique of the writing, directing, or performance, but a basic knowledge of the original characters will greatly improve your appreciation of Slater and Nelson’s plot and the excellent work done by this terrific company.
photos by Brooke Aliceon courtesy of Wildsong
Alice by Heart
Wildsong Theatre and Arts Collective
4944 Newport Ave. in Ocean Beach, San Diego
Thurs, Fri & Sat at 8; Sun at 2
ends on August 4, 2024
for tickets, visit Wildsong
