Photos: First Look At ALICE IN WONDERLAND at The Players Theatre

Theatre patrons in NYC's Greenwich village are going down the rabbit hole with Literally Alive Family Theatre’s "Alice in Wonderland the Musical", currently running Off-Broadway at The Players Theatre. 

Check out photos below!

Based on Lewis Carroll’s original book, the production – returning for its fourth Off-Broadway run – is full of mayhem and magic as Alice sings and dances her way through Wonderland with a cast of zany and fanciful characters. With its original live music by Michael Sgouros and book by Brenda Bell, the production’s sights and sounds transport audiences to the world of Wonderland. 

The whimsical Wonderland set (designed by Elizabeth Chaney with assistant Joanne Chiayuan) is expertly lit by Jessica Choi and makes the perfect backdrop for the colorful characters costumed by Courtney Hansen. 

The show opens in Victorian London, where we meet high-spirited Alice (12-year-old Players Theatre favorite Avery Ilardi), a fun-loving Lewis Carroll (Players Theatre veteran Eric Fletcher), and an ensemble of Victorian folk, including Alice’s older sister Lorena (Celeste Vandermillen) who are too grown-up to appreciate the noise and energy that come with childhood. 

After falling asleep in the park, Alice awakes to find an intriguing White Rabbit (Heidi-Liz Johnson), who she follows down a rabbit hole. She finds herself in Wonderland, where she soon meets Tear Mouse (Ameerah Muhammad) and Dodo Bird (Lisa Podulka) who race and frolic with Alice before leaving her to continue pursuing the rabbit. 

Next, she comes across the iconic Caterpillar (Eric Fletcher) with flower and butterfly dancers (Sydney Speltz and Amanda Sweeney) as well as the Cheshire Cat (Celeste Vandermillen). Alice soon realizes just how “mad” everyone seems in this strange land, which is further underscored when she meets the March Hare (Lisa Podulka) the Mad Hatter (Kiera Matthews) and the Door Mouse (Aidan Kirby), who are engaging in the strangest tea party she has ever attended. From there Alice meets a Page who looks like a playing card (Matthew H. White) and then the inimitable Queen of Hearts (Eric Fletcher) and King of Hearts (Aidan Kirby), who insist she join them for a game of flamingo croquet.  

Soon Alice is abandoned by the Queen as she meets a Gryphon (Shea Coughlin) and Mock Turtle (Heidi-Liz Johnson) who entreat her to join them in dancing The Lobster Ditty. A nonsense trial follows with all the Wonderland characters in attendance, and it is then (after she is sentenced to have her head removed) that Alice stands up to the Queen asserting that she is “nothing but a playing card” before she is woken by Lorena.  

Alice in Wonderland is performed with a live – all percussion – pit that brings Shino Frances’ choreography to life while adding some extra whimsy to magical scene such as when Alice finds herself shrinking and growing. 

Alice in Wonderland runs September 30 through November 5 on Saturdays at 3 and 7pm and Sundays at 11am and 2pm. A special family workshop is before matinees and starts at 2pm on Saturdays and 10am on Sundays. The Players Theatre is located at 115 MacDougal Street in Greenwich Village and is conveniently located near the the West 4th street A C E B D F M lines. 

For more information and to purchase tickets, please visit: www.literallyalive.com 

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