Welcome to "Wonderland" -- the lobby, the auditorium, and the stage are all decorated in technicolor renderings for the Millbrook Community Players' production of Alice in Wonderland: the Musical, and keep audiences delighted for two hours every performance.
Adapted by Janet Yates Vogt and Mark Friedman from Lewis Carroll's classic story, we follow Alice [Reagan Rolling] down the rabbit hole to a land full of strange characters and magical events, as she tries to get back home.
Directors Michael Proper and Missy Price have their hands full with a cast of almost 50 actors of all ages in both principal roles and an ensemble dressed in a dazzling array of costumes [Cheryl Phillips, Lynn Parker, Wanda Harms] while singing and dancing to Daniel Harms' effective choreography.
Occasionally hard to keep track of what's going on due to vocal energy and articulation or a lot of stage "business" that covers up the words, the sheer energy and commitment of the cast is enough to deliver the several musical styles of songs that intersperse the script.
Ms. Rolling is the center of all the action, and her strong singing is a highlight of this production. She is guided by the always-in-a-hurry White Rabbit [Lillie Kate Porter]; and she encounters all of the author's major characters along her way. Chief among them are the marvelous comical double act Tweedle Dum [Clint Collins] and Tweedle Dee [Jeanice Harrison], the almost-disappearing Cheshire Cat [Jessi Gordon], the "Off With Their Heads" shouting Queen of Hearts [a powerful Blair Berry], and the quietly heroic Mock Turtle [Danika Lawson].
There's even a bit of political commentary that Carroll makes in his story about a Caucus Race in which the participants spend a lot of time and energy to accomplish very little or nothing at all. [Sound familiar?]
The show is playing to almost capacity crowds, so if you plan to attend the last performances this weekend, be sure to secure tickets. It's a lot of family-friendly fun.
