REVIEW | Alice in Wonderland, Liverpool Playhouse

★ ★ ★

Reviewer - Aimee

*Disclaimer: Gifted tickets in return for an honest review

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Alice In Wonderland is a fun twist on the classic story. Here we follow Alice, who whilst attempting to fix her late father’s stereo, is enticed inside the object by the white rabbit (who takes the form of the eject button). In order to return back home she must find all the different buttons and bring them back together, whilst also changing the ways of the two evil queens (the two speakers within the stereo). 

The book written by Stockroom starts off with a strong sense of narrative but seems to get a bit lost down the rabbit hole. Once we’re introduced to our main character and we figure out what she has to do, it just becomes less cohesive and slightly chaotic. Act 2 however does offer some resolve to this confusion and ends the story in a nice place. 

The music and lyrics created by Vikki Stone are perfectly fit for the theme of the show. Inspired by the best of British pop the melodies feel familiar in the best way. The lyrics add to this by being particularly catchy and will definitely be stuck in your head for a while after the show ends.

The set and costume design by Mark Bailey is wonderful. The set transports you inside the stereo as we see broken parts littered across the stage, tape wires and springs hanging from the ceiling, all framed by the exterior of the stereo itself. It seems as if more thought was put into the costumes of certain characters such as the Queens and the Jabberwock. In particular, the costumes for Fast Forward and Rewind were just grey jumpsuits with their respective symbols stuck on the front of them. They served their purpose however it would have been better if the level of detail for the costumes was more equal overall. 

The performers all did a great job at bringing their characters to life, however, there was one person I just couldn’t take my eyes off, that being Tomi Ogbaro (who played the role of Bez/Jabberwock/Stop). He had this infectious energy and passion in the delivery of his material, creating funny yet different personality traits for each of his roles. Every time he appeared you just knew he was going to make you laugh, and in a show that’s mainly aimed at children, it’s nice as an adult to still find things to laugh at and enjoy as well.

Overall the show as a whole has its strong parts and weaker moments and may not be the best for adults, however, it is great for children. It has a story and good visual elements to keep a younger audience engaged. There are moments where they get to join in, in a very classic pantomime way. A great evening out at the theatre for families.

• At Liverpool Playhouse until 22 July.