by Mike Carter

The Adamson Theatre Company at Wesley College St Kilda Road presents Lower Middle School students in

ALICE IN WONDERLAND

Wesley College St Kilda Road

© Walt Disney

The Adamson Theatre Company by arrangement with Maverick Musicalspresents Year 5 and 6 students in

Costume Design bySTEPHANIE DES BARRES & JILL WELCH

Technical Direction bySABINO DEL BALSO

Choreography byHELEN TONER

Musical Direction byCATE MOWAT

Designed byTONY SCANLON

Directed by HELEN TONER & CATE MOWAT

2 & 3 December 2010Adamson Theatre, Wesley College St Kilda Road

by Mike Carter

ALICE IN WONDERLAND

A Note From The DirectorsCuriouser and curiouser…

Welcome to Adamson Theatre Company’s Lower Middle School musical, Alice in Wonderland. Here you will find an assortment of strange and wonderful creatures in a strange and wonderful land.

Young Alice is relaxing in a tranquil meadow when, rather unexpectedly, a white rabbit appears proclaiming his tardiness. She follows him down a rabbit hole and soon finds herself amongst the curious inhabitants of Wonderland.

As she travels through this mysterious world she meets an assortment of colourful characters, before ultimately finding herself on trial for the theft of the Queen of Heart’s jam tarts!

After an action packed adventure Alice awakens back in the meadow and realises it was all a dream…or was it?

It has been a fun-filled challenge bringing Lewis Carroll’s much loved tale to life, and we sincerely thank all the hard-working people behind the scenes who have helped to bring the production to the stage. Though our young cast may lack the experience of senior students, they have more than made up for it with their energy and enthusiasm. We are sure that you will see many of Adamson Theatre Company’s future stars on the stage tonight!

All that remains now is to sit back, relax and enjoy the show!

Helen Toner and Cate Mowat

Musical NumbersAct One1. Late for a Date with the Duchess2. Curiouser and Curiouser3. Keep Your Temper4. Wow! Wow! Wow!5. Crash! Wallop! and Bang!6. Crash! Wallop! and Bang! (repeats)7. It’s all a Matter of Time

There will be a 20 minute interval. Refreshments will be served in the Cato Room.

Act Two1. Painting the Roses Red2. Off with her Head3. Off with her Head (repeats)4. Tweedledum and Tweedledee5. Consider your Verdict (repeats)6. Wonderland

Plot SummaryAlice is sitting in a tranquil meadow, when she notices a talking, clothed White Rabbit with a watch run past (Late for a Date with the Duchess). She follows it down a rabbit hole when suddenly she falls a long way to a curious hall with many locked doors of all sizes. She finds a door too small for her to fit through but then discovers a bottle labeled “DRINK ME”. The contents cause her to shrink small enough to fit through the door (Curiouser and Curiouser) and she leaves in pursuit of the White Rabbit.

Alice comes upon a mushroom and sitting on it is a blue Caterpillar smoking a hookah. The Caterpillar questions Alice and she admits to her current identity crisis, before the Caterpillar imparts some advice (Keep Your Temper). Before crawling away, the caterpillar tells Alice that one side of the mushroom will make her taller and the other side will make her shorter. After some deliberation Alice eats from the correct side of the mushroom and returns to her original height.

A Frog-Footman has an invitation for the Duchess of the house, which he delivers to a Fish-Footman. Alice observes this transaction and, after a perplexing conversation with the fish, enters the house. The Duchess’s Cook is throwing dishes and making a soup that has too much pepper, which causes Alice to sneeze violently. Alice is given a baby by the Duchess and to her surprise, the baby turns into a pig. The Cheshire Cat directs her to the March Hare’s house. (WOW! WOW! WOW! and Crash! Wallop! And Bang!).

Alice becomes a guest at a “mad” tea party along with the Hatter (now more commonly known as the Mad Hatter), the March Hare, and a sleeping Dormouse. These characters give Alice many riddles and stories. The Mad Hatter reveals that they have tea all day because time has punished him by eternally standing still at 6pm (It’s All A Matter Of Time). Alice becomes insulted and tired of being bombarded with riddles. As she begins to leave the White Rabbit reappears reiterating his lateness.

Alice leaves the tea party and enters a garden where she comes upon three living playing cards painting the white roses on a rose tree red because the Queen of Hearts hates white roses (Painting The Roses Red). A procession of more cards, the Knave of Hearts and even the White Rabbit enters the garden. Alice then meets the King and Queen. The Queen, a figure difficult to please, introduces her trademark phrase “Off with his head!” which she utters at the slightest dissatisfaction with a subject (Off With Their Heads). Alice is invited to play a

game of croquet with the Queen but the game quickly descends into chaos. Live flamingos are used as mallets and hedgehogs as balls. After the game the White Rabbit suggests Alice may like to visit the seaside and sends her on her way.

On the way to the seaside Alice encounters a confusing signpost and the amusing twins Tweedledum and Tweedledee who entertain her with song and dance (Tweedledum and Tweedledee).

Having left the twins Alice unwittingly finds herself a juror in the trial of the Knave of Hearts who is accused of stealing the Queen of Heart’s jam tarts (Consider Your Verdict). After several protestations from Alice the court attempts to put her on trial, but she defies them and refuses to be intimidated by “just a pack of cards”. All the Wonderland inhabitants fall asleep, only to wake and join Alice as she reflects on her journey (Wonderland).

Alice then awakens back in the meadow and realizes it was all a dream…or was it?

Annika FlodenAlice

Addison NaylorThe White Rabbit

Chloe VotskosThe Caterpillar

(Thursday)

Laura GilbertsonThe Caterpillar (Friday)

Lily ConronThe Fish Footman

Gillie DuncanThe Duchess

Gabriel NeriThe Cheshire Cat

Nikita ChronisThe Mad Hatter

Emma GrovesThe March Hare

Cast

Alice Annika FlodenThe White Rabbit Addison NaylorThe Caterpillar (Night 1) Chloe VotskosThe Caterpillar (Night 2) Laura GilbertsonThe Fish Footman Lily ConronThe Frog Footman Enez NathieThe Cook Lisa StevensThe Duchess Gillie DuncanThe Cheshire Cat Gabriel NeriThe Mad Hatter Nikita ChronisThe March Hare Emma GrovesThe Dormouse Hettie ZygierCard Gardener 2 Oliver HoltCard Gardener 3 Harrison LeggattCard Gardener 4 Georgia PlantThe Queen of Hearts Evie Dixon-CannonThe King of Hearts Samuel HuntTweedledum Matthew CookeTweedledee Jack TaylorKnave of Hearts Carlos EvansSignpost Cameron Pollaers

Girls’ Ensemble

Danae BarbayannisIsabelle AndersonLaura Gilbertson (Night 1)Elyse StewartDana PjanicPiper CrothersAva Jackson

Lucy StewartTess MowatApril BrasseyChristi BrasseyAlana WatsonIsabelle HaddadElla Pinto

Boys’ Ensemble

Matthew WangMalik KomanAdam Ariff-PavlakosEllis NiallJavier Everall-SavoyThomas ConronHassan El-Ansary Amol Khot

Sanjay Vande PolJacob LingardKieren Barber-WilsonSamuel NorthorpeBenjamin Peter-WisniakWilliam HowardAugustus BazzaniBen Aldridge

Hettie ZygierThe Dormouse

Oliver HoltCard Gardener 2

Harrison LeggattCard Gardener 3

Georgia PlantCard Gardener 4

Evie Dixon-CannonThe Queen of Hearts

Samuel HuntThe King of Hearts

Matthew CookeTweedledum

Jack TaylorTweedledee

Carlos EvansKnave of Hearts

Girls’ Ensemble Bubble Technicians

Eden PavlovskiAlexandra JohnstoneJacqueline Johnstone

Isabella HoskingPiper McQuarrieFarah Khairat

Production TeamDirected by ...................................................................... Cate Mowat & Helen Toner

Student Directors ...................................................... Meg Duncan and Syd Zygier

Technical Direction by .................................................................... Sabino Del Balso

Designed by ............................................................................................... Tony Scanlon

Musical Direction by ................................................................................. Cate Mowat

Choreography by ....................................................................................... Helen Toner

Dialogue Coach & Characterisations by ....................................... Dawson Hann

Sound Mixing ............................................................................................ David Mowat

Costume Design by .................................... Stephanie Des Barres and Jill Welch

Make-up by ........................................................... Stephanie Des Barres, Jill Welch, Alexia Thorne, Rachael Findlay,

Syd Zygier, Meg Duncan

Properties by ......................................................... Dawson Hann and Lisa Bennett

Backstage Managers ..................................... Alexia Thorne and Rachael Findlay

Backstage Crew ............................................................ Liam Allan, Georgie Byrnes,Branford Gruar, Martin Quinn

Emily Clinch, Caspian Nicholls

Set Construction and Scenery Painting .................. Tony Scanlon, Ron Tidhar, Elliot Majid, Tom Bolst,

Will Cook, Seamus Bolst,Alexia Thorne

Additional Scenic Art ......................................... Brendon Pierce (Scenic Studios)

Company Manager ........................................................... Brett Fairbank (OW2003)

Poster & Program ................................................................................... Brett Fairbank

Box Office Assistants ............................................. Annie Green, Gabrielle Dalton and Branford Gruar