Wonderful show in store at Derby Theatre

Derby Theatre's festive offering for this year will be Alice In Wonderland.

The magical new adaptation by Mike Kenny of the much-loved Lewis Carroll book is to be directed by Sarah Brigham and can be seen at the theatre from Friday, December 2 until Saturday, January 7.

Alice is an ordinary girl, anxious about a big day at school, when suddenly she falls down a rabbit hole and everything goes a bit strange. Plunged into a bonkers world, ruled by The Queen of Hearts, from the present time

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and place, Alice meets all the familiar characters of Carroll’s tale, the White Rabbit, The Mad Hatter, the Caterpillar and Tweedle Dum & Tweedle Dee, but she notices they bear a rather odd resemblance to her friends, her teachers,

her family and the school bullies.

Can she make sense of it, and find a way out, and how can she wake up from this dream when she’s not even aware that she’s asleep?

So join Alice, The Mad Hatter, the Cheshire Cat and the Dormouse at Derby Theatre for an evening of sheer madness, where not everything is as it seems.

Playing the title character, Alice will be Abby Wain. Abby originates from the region and over the years has performed in different venues across Derbyshire. Abby studied drama, theatre studies and performing arts at Bilborough College before training at East 15. Abby’s recent credits include Tale of Two Cities: Blood for Blood and Alice’s Adventures Underground.

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Joining Abby will be Dominic Rye as The Mad Hatter (Love’s Labour’s Lost for Oxford Shakespeare Company and Treasure Island for Birmingham Rep); Elizabeth Eves as the Duchess and Mother (Hare and Tortoise and The Kite Runner for Nottingham Playhouse and An August Bank Holiday Lark for Northern Broadsides); Jack Quarton as the White Rabbit (Aladdin for the Key Theatre in Peterborough and Alice in Wonderland for Octagon Theatre Bolton); and Joanna Brown as the Queen of Hearts (A Midsummer Night’s Dream for Theatre in the Forest and The Princess and the Pea for York Theatre Royal); Paula James as Tweedle Dum (Snow Child for tutti frutti and York Theatre Royal);

Mike Kenny is one of England’s leading writers, specialising in theatre for young people and families. He is the recipient of numerous awards and his plays are performed regularly throughout the UK and all over the world. Mike’s adaptation of The Railway Children won the 2011 Olivier Award for Best Entertainment, which can currently be seen in a purpose-built theatre space at Kings Cross. This Christmas, Mike has five of his plays being performed in the UK and abroad.

Sarah Brigham said: “I’m thrilled to commission a brand new adaptation of Lewis Carroll’s classic story Alice in Wonderland, which will play in our main house. Alice is full of magic and colourful, curious and wonderful characters, and our version will be a fun and stylish interpretation for all the family.”

Tickets for Alice in Wonderland range from £12 to £28, with concession and group rates available. For more information and to book tickets, call the box office on 01332 593939 or visit www.derbytheatre.co.uk

Abby Wain is pictured

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