Alice In Wonderland

Getting this show to the stage has been an uphill battle.

We held a couple of sets of auditions on 10^th and 17^th February 2002 and rehearsals started on Sunday 17^th March, with the intention of the show going on in June.

Unfortunately, as explained in this newsletter:
Due to problems with the lighting at the Civic Theatre we have decided to postpone our production of Alice In Wonderland - the wiring for the lighting has been deemed unsafe to use and we have been given no definite date for when the repair work is to be carried out.
There is the possibility that the work will be completed by the end of June, but we simply cannot afford to take the risk that it may or may not be complete by then. At present we have spent very little money promoting the play; if we start issuing posters, flyers etc to advertise the show and then have to cancel we stand to lose both financially and in terms of running the risk of audiences turning-up and finding the theatre closed.

Rehearsals recommenced on 11^th August, with the new performance dates set to the end of October. The story of the play is best told by Alan Williams, the Director and co-writer:

The idea of writing our own version of "Alice" was conceived in the summer of 2001, after our production of "The Lion, the Witch And The Wardrobe". Finding a suitable play for a large cast, without resorting to pantomime, can be a difficult task, therefore we decided to write our own show.
The first draft of the script was completed over the Christmas holiday last year and, at this point, it was essentially just the two novels rewritten into a stage script. I then co-opted Richard and we began scripting a few original pieces and adding to the dialogue in various places. At this point there were several problems including the fact that we had no idea how to cope with a disappearing Cheshire Cat and that there was very little 'continuation' between acts one and two (ie: the two books); we eventually got over these problems in what is, I hope, a fairly original manner.
We had a near-complete script by the start of February but still no idea what music to include. We decided on the songs we wanted to use and at the same time gave Kathy a list of the poems that we wanted "setting to music". Re-reads and minor edits were made in February and by the end of March we had what we considered to be a finished version, although minor changes have been made during rehearsals!
Rehearsals for the show began in March, with an original intention of going on-stage in June but problems with lighting at the Civic Theatre meant that we had to postpone the show. Therefore, from my point of view, it has been almost twelve months from starting the script to getting the play onto the stage!
Finally a few words of thanks: not least to the cast for all of their hard work; also to the people who have worked on the costumes and scenery, without those people this show would never have made it onto stage. Not forgetting a huge vote of thanks to everyone working backstage and front of house (their work is invaluable) and just in case I have missed anyone(!): thanks to anyone else who has helped with this show.
Alan Williams, director and co-writer