THE TIMES
Alice in Wonderland: a totally bonkers, ultimately enjoyable slice of family theatre
It is always tempting with a story like Alice in Wonderland, which has been told innumerable times before, to “mix it up”. Often this can be a change in time and place, or the introduction of a satirical element – or you can go out on a limb with something completely wacky.
This production, which centres around Alice and her brother Lewis being lured into her dead father’s stereo by its eject button (a White Rabbit surrogate), falls firmly into the latter category. Staged at Liverpool’s venerable Playhouse Theatre – an enchanting, if somewhat down-at-heel former Victorian music hall whose fittings have not been touched since the 1960s – it makes for a totally bonkers, if ultimately enjoyable family theatre trip.
The plot sees our protagonist scurrying around the inside of the stereo to find the “buttons” – each one of them a representative of a Wonderland character from Lewis Carroll’s novel – to make the stereo work again. Our introduction to Alice, her trip into the stereo, and her meeting with the characters within, all feels very rushed and disjointed, to the effect that the first half hour of the play is a disorientating experience.
Forget Lewis Carroll’s dark and riddling storyline with its memorably circular structure: other than a few names of characters, there is very little resemblance to the Victorian novel. Amusing set pieces and bright designs may nonetheless speak to children, even if repeated jokes revolving around the working of cassette tapes will be lost on those raised in the digital age.
A significant plot twist part way through the first half saves the production, adding intrigue and emotional complexity that suddenly grounds the plot in a more interesting narrative. And as well as this rather miraculous about-turn, what really lifts this production is its excellent cast of nine actors, who each bring an interesting personality and excellent singing voice to the mix.
Highlights include the Olivier Award-winning Leanne Jones bringing camp bravado and superb harmonies to her role of the “Queen of Charts”. Tomi Ogbaro is a bundle of warm, comic energy as he switches between playing the Jabberwock, the “Stop” button, and Cheshire Cat (“paws” button). Paislie Reid also brings an irresistibly cheerful demeanour to the role of Alice, lifting a part that could so easily fade into the background of so many eccentrics.
With warm-hearted jokes, audience participation, and cheap, naturalistic stage design (by Mark Bailey), this is a show drawn directly from the pantomime tradition. But there is also heartfelt music (by Vikki Stone) and a more complex emotional tapestry in the second half as Alice comes to terms with the loss of her father. It might not ever quite make sense, but this is a big, warm-hearted show that may well be worth a trip during the long summer holidays.