All the iconic residents of Wonderland will stop over in the Middle Keys this weekend as the youngsters of Marathon Community Theatre present “Alice in Wonderland Jr.”
Blending classic Disney tunes with new songs, and even some from the 2010 live-action film, the final product of MCT’s Children’s Summer Theatre program brings audiences through the wacky world of Wonderland, following Alice (Isla Mann) as she finds her way home – and finds her truest self along the way.
She’ll chase the always-late White Rabbit (Gabbi Doering) with the Cheshire Cats (Leona Macias, Jordan Spalten and Carli D’Ascanio) as her guides, listen to sage advice from an encouraging Caterpillar (Mia Williams), dodge the confusion of Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum (Casey Torres and Jovanna Garcia).
She’ll even go toe-to-toe with the Queen of Hearts (Sophia Hutchins) in a game of Simon Says, all while meeting a menagerie of Wonderland’s residents, from a puzzling Doorknob (Trevor Gordon) to the Mad Hatter (Hannah Hutchinson), the Dodo Bird (Ian Reyes), the Flowers of the Golden Afternoon and the Royal Cards.
“The show starts off with regular people, but then we immediately jump into lobsters and talking flowers,” Hutchins said. “It’s from zero to 100 really fast.”
Though this year’s summer program features a younger cast on average, most of the show’s principal actors aren’t strangers on stage, having shared the spotlight in past Children’s Theatre productions or at Marathon High School.
“At first, for shows like ‘Wizard of Oz’ (in 2022), there were a lot of older kids, and I was younger, so I was scared,” said Doering. “Now that we’re the older kids, it’s not that scary any more.”
“It’s way easier with people that you’re more experienced with on stage,” she added. “You know that if you mess up, they understand, because we’ve all been doing this together.”
Longtime children’s theater co-director Kara Pascucci is now in double digits with her summer shows, and “Alice” will mark her third production sharing the helm with Stephanie Zajac.
“We’re perfect together – we complement each other,” said Pascucci. “Stephanie has all the tech skills, construction and things like that while I do lights, the sound booth, that type of stuff.”
“Kara and Stephanie are really good at adding creative liberties for everybody,” said Hutchins. “They’ll ask what we think is best, and that really adds the sense that they know you know what you’re doing. They want us all to do what’s best for our characters.”
“This is primarily a younger cast, but they’ve listened better,” Pascucci said. “I know that they’ve worked really hard at home, because I’ve gotten phone calls and emails from parents asking questions about music and their parts.”
“Alice in Wonderland Jr.” runs on Friday and Saturday, July 12 and 13 at 7 p.m. with a 2 p.m. matinee on Sunday, July 14. Tickets are $15 and are available at marathontheater.org or by calling 305-743-0994.
“Watch out for the parts where everyone’s on stage,” said Hutchins. “That’s how you know it’s about to get chaotic – and really good.”
Photos by ALEX RICKERT/Keys Weekly.
