'Alison Wonderland' hits stage

Despite a slow start, Intuiton's fall show Alison Wonderland, finished strong in its debut last night. Highlighted by exemplary performances, the two-act play is the story of Alison Wonderland's look back on different points in her life. The title character, played by College sophomore Phoebe Hyde, recalls dream voyages through Wonderland and explores both childhood experiences and her college years. The somewhat amusing first hour and a half of the production lacked a clear focus. But, it was well complemented by the shorter second act which created and explored the show's message in only 45 minutes. The scenes in Wonderland are colorful and entertaining, though the humor is occasionally forced. And many of the dream sequences leave something to be desired. Nursing freshman Shannon Bisbee, who plays Alison as a child, excels in the scenes that are based in reality – such as playing with her classmates and having tea with adults. Unfortunately, the reality scenes are trivialized by the majority of scenes which are based in Wonderland. Throughout the play, scenes parallel one another, as the dream world is compared directly to the two real ones. This is an extremely effective technique, and provides the most intriguing aspect of the first act. In the second act, Wonderland falls to the background and Alice's college life becomes the focus. Played by College junior Amy Pickard, the college-age Alice tries to discover her personal identity. Unlike in the first act, the dream scenes have become more introspective and do not lose their entertaining value. Pickard's use of facial expressions and monologues, and her interaction with other characters, is the high point of the show. College junior Aron Greenberg's effective performance in the second act made audience members wish he had a larger role in the first. As narrator, Hyde began and ended the show with fascinating monologues. But for the most part of the play, she sat on the stage steps without the lines needed to explore the unfolding events. According to Director Michael Breslow, a College senior, the play's primary goal was to provide its audiences with thought-provoking material. While the show gives audience members a great deal to ponder upon leaving, a solid first act would have made the play more effective. Alison Wonderland will run tonight and tomorrow night, as well as December 9 through 11 in the Houston Hall Auditorium. Tickets are on sale on Locust Walk for $5.