Submitted by Adam Jackson of the Montgomery Blair High School CAPPIES Theatre Review Group

Alice climbs through a looking glass, falls through a rabbit hole, and winds up competing in an awkward race with a variety of animals…and then things get weird. Bishop O’Connell featured these and “curiouser and curiouser” occurrences and characters in their production of Alice in Wonderland.

Originally published in the nineteenth century, Lewis Carroll’s books Alice in Wonderland and its sequel Through the Looking Glass, and What Alice Found There describe a young girl’s adventures in strange and often confusing worlds. Bishop O’Connell combined the two stories, allowing all of the famous characters encountered by Alice (Rose Brand) to make appearances.

The production featured a large cast who typically worked well together. The cast displayed comfort both with each other and in front of an audience, making even the most absurd scenes of the play believable, if still implausible.

With such a huge cast, it is difficult to single out great performers, but a few actors stood out among the rest. Celina Ces, playing the Red Queen, showed skill in both physical and vocal comedy. In a production featuring several difficult accents, Ces was among the few who maintained a believable accent, without sacrificing the clarity of her lines. Also of note was Stephen Benedicto as a very gymnastic and effeminate Cheshire Cat, whose scene with Alice was surprisingly fresh. The ensembles of flowers and cards were good as well, although some moments, particularly those during the pivotal croquet game lacked energy.

The set, considering the level of complexity and absurdity required in depicting Wonderland, was very good. A huge drop featuring glow-in-the-dark paint was among the most memorable set pieces, but Katy McGinley’s set design also featured large reproductions of John Tenniel’s famous illustrations. The costumes, designed by Kathryn Elliot and Aileen Mooney, were also good. All of the many costumes in the production looked well crafted, and each reflected the characters in a fairly original manner.

Alice’s journeys down the rabbit hole and through the looking glass may be confusing, but Bishop O’Connell presented them in a clear and enjoyable production. Although some of the political and social commentary might have been lost on a contemporary American audience, this production managed to include Carroll’s use of puns, stock characters, and absurd situations with such originality that the evening really was very, very “curious.”