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AMS drama club performs ‘Alice in Wonderland’
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Neighbors | Sarah Foor .The Red Queen (Alison Rein) sang about the power of friendship to her pal, the White Queen, during the AMS production of "Alice in Wonderland" on March 1.
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Neighbors | Sarah Foor .The large cast of Austintown Middle School's production of "Alice in Wonderland" gathered onstage for a courtroom scene during a March 1 presentation of the play.
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Neighbors | Sarah Foor .In the AMS production of "Alice in Wonderland," the wacky Mad Hatter (Sophia Logston, right) asks Alice (Maia Totterdale, left) the confusing riddle, "Why is a raven like a writing desk?"
By SARAH FOOR
Before Alice falls into the rabbit hole in “Alice in Wonderland,” she imagines, “If I had a world of my own, everything would be nonsense. Nothing would be what it is, because everything would be what it isn’t... you see?”
In their largest production ever, Austintown Middle School’s Drama Club brought Alice’s nonsensical world to life with their performances of “Alice in Wonderland” on March 1-3.
The production closely followed Lewis Carroll’s 1865 novel and the 1951 animated Disney interpretation, finding Alice daydreaming at the bank of a river before spotting a white rabbit she decides to follow. She then finds herself in topsy-turvy Wonderland, where she meets characters like the Queen of Hearts, Mad Hatter and Tweedledum and Tweedledee.
Although the plot was familiar, the creativity of the drama department and AMS students transformed the play into a one-of-a-kind production.
Director Ron Johnson added songs from the ‘60s and ‘70s into the production, including hits by Jimi Hendrix, Paul McCartney and Wings, Steppenwolf, and Jefferson Starship. Talented pianist and Queen of Hearts, Sabrina Segretario, tickled the ivories in a scene that had the cast and audience dancing.
“This production is a much bigger scope than anything we have tried before. Last year’s production of Snow White included 32 cast and crew, and this year, we’ve grown to 82. We got a lot bigger and a lot more creative with ‘Alice,’” said Johnson.
The set included a painted backdrop and creatively fabricated sets, including a perch for the Cheshire Cat and Caterpillar surrounded by foam mushrooms. Impressive costuming included a glowing Toniann Minardi, whose Cheshire Cat costume was weaved with tube black lights.
As the production ended, Johnson was already looking forward to the future of AMS Drama.
“We want to be the largest middle school production around — and the best. We want people to hear ‘AMS Drama’ and know to expect an amazing show,” he said.