Down the Rabbit Hole

Blackburn College is going down the rabbit hole. This fall the Blackburn Theatre Department will put on “Six Impossible Things Before Breakfast,” an adaptation of author Lewis Carroll’s nonsense fiction novel “Alice’s Adventures In Wonderland.” Carroll’s novel tells the story of a girl named Alice who has fallen down a rabbit hole after following a white, waistcoat-wearing, pocket watch-carrying rabbit. Alice has to find her way home while she meets many strange characters, such as a crazy hat maker whose watch is forever frozen at tea time, a grinning cat that can change his appearance and a queen with a rather large head and an obsession with hearts and the color red.

The story of Alice has been adapted many times since it was first published in 1865, the most famous adaptation being Disney’s 1951 animated version which is very similar to Carroll’s original novel. The story itself has slightly dark undertones to it and Disney stayed close enough to the plot of the novel that the film could scare children. Despite the fact that she now enjoys the animated movie, sophomore Ursa-Minor Matlock said, “I remember being frightened of the cartoon when I was younger.” Today the animated movie is considered a Disney classic. Now Blackburn is joining the extensive line of productions, thanks to the Performing Arts Department.

“Six Impossible Things Before Breakfast,” which was written by Marilyn Hetzel and Lee Potts, was chosen by new theater professor Dr. Carolyn Conover for its theatrical staging, opportunities for creativity and its level of difficulty. This particular show uses the human body to create the props and creatures. making it truly unique. “We are hoping to continuously walk the line between ‘wonder’ and ‘nightmare’ and have a balance of ‘fun’ and ‘creepy’ throughout,” said Conover. “Six Impossible Things Before Breakfast” features 13 Blackburn students in acting roles and other various students working behind the scenes to create something magical. Some students at Blackburn have heard a great deal about the story of Alice In Wonderland and have watched various adaptations. Some like Matlock have even read the book.

Based on what she knows of the story and of Blackburn’s theater program, Matlock is hoping to see “beautiful Wonderland scenery.” Likewise, sophomore psychology major Jacob Weber believes that the actors that Blackburn casts will portray the wacky and out-of-this-world characters well. Fellow sophomore Alex McAuley is hoping that the play stays true to the story with few changes being made to the overall plot because “things as old as Alice In Wonderland shouldn’t be changed.” He added, “Obviously it is going to be changed, but Blackburn will do a good job of it.”

The show will open on Thursday, Nov. 3, at 7:30 p.m., and will run until Nov. 6 with a matinee at 2:00 p.m.