CYT NWCook Presents “Alice in Wonderland: A Pop Musical"

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Article by Jennifer Schneider; Photos by Alysa Clark

Whimsy and wordplay are the order of the day in this pop rock musical adaptation of Lewis Carroll’s classic Alice in Wonderland, a favorite for generations of children and adults. Performances run October 25-November 4 at Prairie Lakes Community Center, 515 E. Thacker St. Des Plaines.

“Basically, it has almost nothing to do with the original story, except that she falls down the rabbit hole,” says the show’s director, Melissa Crabtree, laughing. “We have Alice. We have Wonderland Entertainment. We have an alternate world, where she meets all these different characters who are ‘nods and winks’ to characters you know from the original story.”

Alice in Wonderland: A Pop Musical was written by Jon Lorenz, a good friend of CYT. The show won the 2005 Stephen Schwartz/ASCAP National New Musical Award. Some of the lyrics are taken directly from Caroll’s book, and the story loosely follows the concept of Alice as someone who has fallen into a crazy world, and who comes out the other side with a new perspective.

In this adaptation, Alice Liddell is a seventeen-year-old at Lutridge Academy. Pressured by teachers and parents to draw up a ten-year life plan for her final grade, Alice ditches school to meet her idol Delilah, a rock queen with Alice’s idea of a perfect life. In pursuit of a meeting with Delilah, she falls down the “rabbit hole.”

“She ends up going down a path that has many twists and turns,” says Kaylee Hayden, the talented 17-year-old playing the title role. “The journey helps her discover who she is and where she wants to be in her life.”

“Our show is a fun twist on the story, and keeps the whimsical elements from the original, but adds a whole other level that relates to today’s society,” says Hayden.

“I love the show because the cast can really have ownership – it is THEIR show,” she continues. “It really lets us ask, ‘What is awesome about you being you?’ and can we put that in the show and highlight it.”

Spread throughout Alice is toe-tapping original music numbers, borrowing from many rock genres including pop, blues, and rock and roll. “My favorite songs are ‘My Turn Now’ at the end of act one, and ‘Looking Glass Girl’ to end the show,” says Hayden. “There is some really awesome talent in the show, and it will make your heart melt.”

“The music is fun, and the kids really like it,” confirms Crabtree.

Set against this whimsical, funny world, the message is still a serious one - not trying to change yourself into what your friends and family want you to be.

“Alice and the other characters discover through the course of the show that it is okay to not know what the plan is right this minute,” says Crabtree. “What is important is being yourself.”

“I’m a senior in high school,” says Hayden. “I can relate to the message. I think a lot of other people will relate to it too.”

Bright, modern and splashy, this version of the Alice tale connects the strange happenings of Wonderland to her real world as she explores the adolescent frustration of, “What am I going to do with my life?”

Alice in Wonderland: A Pop Musical is a great show for families of all ages. Tickets are $13-$15 presale, + $2 at the door (weekday matinee, child, and senior prices available). Visit www.cytchicago.org and click on “Shows” or call 847-516-2298 to purchase tickets. The Prairie Lakes Theater seats only 300, so shows sell out very quickly.