Alice In Wonderland

Alice in Wonderland
Theatre-Hikes Colorado
Cherokee Ranch and Castle
Sedalia, CO
June 7 - July 6, 2014

Alice in Wonderland is the third production I've seen from Theatre-Hikes Colorado. The first two were performed at the Denver Botanic Gardens which was more like a nice walk than a hike. However, with the popular Chihuly exhibit I'm sure the Gardens didn't want to add to the crowds. It's really too bad because exhibit would have a perfect backdrop for Alice.

Today's performance was at Cherokee Castle and Ranch in Sedalia. It's a beautiful mountain setting and I could see we were in for a real hike. The group met in front of the castle and the staff made sure everyone checked in before the  hike began.

We followed a violin player who walked with our guide at the head of the group. When we arrived at the first location, the actors were already in place. There was a lovely blonde playing Alice and the rest of the actors played multiple characters. They didn't change clothing, but they added enough accessories for the audience to easily see who they were.

We hiked to five different locations for the five scenes. The cast used each of the locations well to frame the scene. The actors were clearly having fun with the ridiculous story and that only made it more fun for the audience. The script also included lesser known characters from the book which only kept us guessing even more.

The Theatre-Hikes productions are not the greatest performances you will ever see. But the choice of fun material and natural scenery make them more memorable.

The Snow Queen

The Snow Queen
Aurora Fox Theater
Aurora, CO
June 10-26, 2014

With the success of Disney's Frozen, it's not surprising that local theaters will be adapting Hans Christian Anderson's The Snow Queen to capitalize on the movie's success. The original story, however, is much different from the popular film.

The set and costumes were imaginative and a group of snowflakes acted as the narrator's of the show as we followed Gerta's journey to free her friend Kai from the evil snow queen. Her adventures included escape from a old woman with talking flowers and coming across a feisty wolf.

At the end, Gerta's love melts the heart of the Snow Queen and she announces she is "the queen of the sun." It is an abrupt, but satisfying conclusion. After the curtain call, the cast walked down the aisle to the lobby where they graciously met with the audience, which was mostly school groups. As it turned out, they were all kids and clearly enjoyed their time together.

The Tempest

The Tempest
The Colorado Shakespeare Festival
Mary Rippon Theater
Boulder, CO 
June 6 - August 10, 2014

When I attended the University of Colorado, I went to the Colorado Shakespeare Festival. Among the last plays I saw was The Tempest. That was many years ago, so I was interested to see how they would perform this classic play now.

When I arrived it was clear this would be a very different version. The set looked like a shipwreck and when the sun went down the lighting was magical.

As with all Shakespeare plays, we met a multitude of characters with various purpose. We meet Prospero, the tragic leading man and his daughter Miranda, the lovesick teenager. Stephano and Triniculo provide the comic relief. And we have a healthy dose of the supernatural with Ariel, the sprite and the monster, Caliban.

Many story lines intertwine on this magical island, but in the end all is well. (This is a comedy, after all.) The acting is stellar and the lighting superb at changing the stoic set into many locations. The Cirque De Soleil acrobatics of Ariel aren't seamless, but it's fun to watch. The special effects are dynamic, if not spectacular. The director has made the most of this space and the audience is always involved.

It's a magical event under the stars.