Disney's Alice in Wonderland, Jr. ????

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November 2, 2012
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Thinking of doing this show. If anyone has done it I would love some insight into its pros and cons. I am working with a 6-8th grade group. Most have been in quite a few shows. We just want it to be likable and fun, not too dark. We do the show for pre-K-8th. I am a little worried about the # of songs (16) and the length. Can it be done in 11/2 hrs? We are choosing it because of the number of featured parts.
2 Answers

December 8, 2015
We did this show in 2008 and are doing it again this Spring. It's is one of the best of the Broadway Junior shows, with lots of fun parts and great music. We are a Youth Theatre with actors in Grades 2-12, so the ability to have actors of various ages in the parts was a real plus for us. Also, most of the parts are not gender specific so that it isn't a problem when you don't have very many boys (our situation). Because the show is episodic, different segments can be rehearsed separately, and the format gives everyone a moment in the spotlight. It is a funny and tuneful show which I would thoroughly recommend. One caveat though....the music is harder than many of the Broadway Jr. shows. However, it really repays the hard work one has to put in to get the songs right. The person asking the question (who hopefully would have ended up doing this wonderful show in spite of his/her expressed concerns) said that they wanted it to be "... not too dark". Well, anyone doing this show need have no worries on that score. A less "dark" show would be hard to find. The Queen does yell "Off with her head" lots of times, but rest assured that there are no actual executions in the show! Go for it and break a leg!

January 13, 2014
I know this reply is a little way too late, but I did Alice in Wonderland Jr. and it is a great show. It's easy to put on because it's very episodic, and you can practice multiple scenes and songs at one time as long as there's a stand-in reading for Alice as she does whatever she's doing. It's a little silly and I honestly wish they sticked to the movie just a little bit more, but overall it's a fun play to put on and a very entertaining one to watch. The only thing I have to say is you don't really have to have multiple Alices for her size. The difference between actors will only be ten inches or so at most anyway, and as long as you switch around the part they're all on stage just a little bit (so Alice just changes what they say together into a single monologue, which will actually make more sense than it originally does,) and make the props accordingly (which you'd do anyway), it'd be perfect. As for the number of songs, they're catchy and easy to memorize, and the length can be effected by speeding up or even editing the dialogue (but only if you have to). It could easily be done in that amount of time, I think. Sorry for wasting your time if you've already done it, but if you decided against it, it'd be awesome for your next show!