by Kirby Lindsay Laney, posted 27 March 2015
Starting April 10th (through May 3rd,) Stone Soup Theatre will present Alice In Wonderland by Andre Gregory – an Alice for all ages – for the 150th anniversary of the book that inspired it all.
This tribute performance “is simply the story, in one act,” explained Gordon Coffey, co-Producer and Director, “there’s no psycho-babble in it. No social commentary. No sexual innuendo.” Coffey wanted to bring Lewis Carroll’s “incredible fairy tale,” to the stage. “I want to do ensemble work,” he said, “and this is one of the hardest one-acts one could ever produce.”
“Come and see actors perform like you’ve never seen before,” Coffey said of the seven ensemble performers, “it’s a breath of fresh air. I can’t say enough about the cast!”
Leave Your Ego At The Door
Coffey, a veteran actor and director, only recently returned to Seattle stages after he decided, “I’m going back into theater, but I’m going to do it my way this time.” One way he’s done it is by choosing projects he believes in, such as the ensemble work of ‘Alice In Wonderland.’ “It has seven actors – they play all the parts and they never leave the stage,” the Director explained, “in ensemble work, you leave your ego at the door.”
The cast Coffey has assembled is a mix of young actors he met while teaching (with Joanna Goff Sunde) at Edmonds Community College and Central Washington University, and actors he found through open auditions.
The cast – Sara Kaus, Stephanie Couch, Lillian Afful, Brittany Menzies, Vero Lecocq, Chad Oswald, and Edwin Adam Fisher – were put through their paces to bring this Alice, written by Andre Gregory, to the stage. Coffey held special sessions, like ones with Arne Zaslove, where they learned about mime for animals and mask work, to help them realize the complex tapestry of characters they create. For instance, Menzies will play the Narrator, a door, the Mouse, the Red Queen and the White Knight, while three other actresses perform the role of Alice at different times in the story.
“The actors change characters immediately in front of the audience,” Coffey explained, using a minimum of props and costumes. “As a result, the actors carry a tremendous load,” he observed, understanding what he is asking of his cast, “they have to carry time and place with them.”
‘A Springboard For The Imagination’
Coffey chose to produce, and direct, Gregory’s ‘Alice’ specifically. “There is a writing style called literary nonsense – stuff that sounds very good but makes no sense – and Carroll was magic with literary nonsense,” The Director observed. This version of both of Lewis Carroll’s books – Alice’s Adventures In Wonderland and Through The Looking-Glass – condense the magical world into a one-act that can be performed using elements of vaudeville and commedia dell’arte, making it easily accessible to all audiences.
Coffey worked with Gregory, at the Seattle Repertory Theatre in 1963-64 and at the Los Angeles Repertory, and knows first-hand of Gregory’s brilliance with avant-garde and experimental theater. Gregory created his ‘Alice’ through ensemble improvisation, and Coffey wants to honor that work and to ‘use the script as a springboard for the imagination,’ as he paraphrased Gregory’s caveat from the end of his script.
Coffey is also pleased to be working again at Stone Soup (he did a remarkable turn as the lead in the production of ‘The Young Man From Atlanta,’ directed by Maureen Hawkins,) and in fringe theater, “where the creativity is happening.” Gregory’s work belongs in a world of creativity and freedom, and Coffey sees that as being the role of small, independent theaters like Stone Soup.
“Big time professional theaters are run like a corporation,” Coffey observed, “that’s okay, because it’s what they have to do, but it’s not my cup of tea.” Small, independent theaters, like Stone Soup, can do the interesting, inventive and imaginative, appealing to smaller, more selective (and appreciative) audiences.
Stone Soup Theatre will give its audience an antic adventure this spring with ‘Alice In Wonderland’ by Andre Gregory, for those who take up the invitation to dive into the delightful world of fringe theater. Purchase tickets through the Stone Soup website, or Brown Paper Tickets, to support creativity and enjoy a favorite classic of150 years duration!
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