Wonderland by Kate Belcher

Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland is a strange and wonderful novel written by Lewis Carroll in 1865. The text of the book, however, is dense and old-fashioned. What relevance does it have for a 21st-century young performer?

Young performers often enjoy a sense of the ridiculous and grotesque. They relish the opportunity to indulge in eccentric and over-the-top characters that they can really have some fun with. With this in mind, it is important to give all the performers in the production a chance to experiment with this style of acting.

The script of Wonderland offers just such opportunities. The cast is large, and each performer has a named speaking role. As a director this is very important, as offering a child the role of Third Spear Carrier is belittling and makes that child feel that their contribution to the production is smaller and less important than a main featured role. By ensuring each child has a named part in the show, each performer is given a sense of ownership and becomes an integral part of the ensemble.