Alice In Wonderland

Summertime in Melbourne is never far from a deluge of rain and with a 2024 weather forecast predicting stormy weather came a hasty venue change for this much heralded production of Alice in Wonderland, usually staged in the lush gardens at the Ripponlea Estate. The new residency in the heart of the city at the iconic Capitol Theatre, designed by architecture Walter Burley Griffith, with its magical light display in the art deco ceiling is the ideal location for Alice dreaming in her Wonderland. 

A fun miss-mash of Lewis Carroll’s Alice Adventures in Wonderland (1865) and its sequel Through the Looking Glass (1871), director Dennis Manahan, who also plays several roles, has developed an innovative show adapted from the original Glen Elston production as part of the summer outdoor interactive theatre experiences presented by the Australian Shakespeare Company since 1987. 

A lively behind the scenes introduction by the Mad Hatter (Dennis Manahan) encourages us to enter into a world of imagination. Bill the Lizard (Dennis Manahan) along with the White Rabbit (Rachel Tunaley) bedazzle the audience with song and dance routines involving audience participation, setting the scene for a magical ride into Wonderland.   

Superb stage performances, along with gorgeous animated and colourful sets designed to accompany clever animated puppetry for Humpty Dumpty; the caterpillar and the rather shabby looking Cheshire Cat. The Mad Hatter’s Tea Party is nonsense extraordinaire, and the Queen of Hearts (Maddie Mason) is not to be messed with, so hold on to your head. Tweedle Dee (Maddie Mason) and Tweedle Dum (Krystal Meyer) sing and dance in ridiculous merriment and Alice (Cassidy Dunn) is always bewildered and astonished.  

The audience, young and old, are mesmerised by the effervescent antics of these talented rambunctious performers.  This show is a rather curious interpretation of this much-loved story, and it does still work on so many wacky levels. 

Flora Georgiou