Download enrichment guide - Citadel Theatre

ENRICHMENT GUIDE
ORIGINAL DIRECTION BY JILLIAN KEILEY
REVIVAL DIRECTION BY CHRISTINE BRUBAKER
Written by Lewis CARROLL
Adapted by JAMES REANEY
Play Guides sponsored by
ALICE THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS
TABLE OF CONTENTS
THEATRE ETIQUETTE
3
CAST, ARTISTIC TEAM AND CHARACTERS
4
SYNOPSIS
5
ABOUT THE PLAYWRIGHT
6
ABOUT THE AUTOR
7-8
POEMS WITHIN THE WORK
9-13
SCRIPT REFERENCES
14
THEMES
15-16
PRODUCTION ELEMENTS
17
QUESTIONS FOR DISCUSSION
18
FURTHER READING/REFERENCES
19
CURRICULUM ALIGNMENT
20-21
2
ALICE THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS
THEATRE ETIQUETTE
Going to the theatre is an engaging and interactive experience. We want you to be an active participant when you
see our shows; laugh when it’s funny, cry when it’s sad, gasp when it’s shocking, and enjoy the experience as much
as possible. But we want you to do this in the most respectful way possible, for both the performers and your fellow audience members.
To ensure the most positive experience, please review the following information prior to arriving at the theatre.
The following items are not allowed in the theatre:
•Food and drink (except that sold during intermission and/or permitted by the Citadel Theatre, such as bottled water and ice cream)
•Cameras and other recording devices (please note that taking photographs or other recordings in the theatre is
strictly prohibited by law)
Basic courtesy:
•Turn OFF and put away all electronic devices such as cell phones, iPods, video game systems, etc. prior to entering the theatre
•Do not place your feet on the seat in front of you.
•The actors onstage can see and hear the audience during the performance – it is important that audience members
not talk, move around, or fidget during the performance, as this can be distracting for the actors, as well as fellow
audience members.
•There is no dress code at the Citadel Theatre, but we respectfully request that patrons refrain from wearing hats
in the theatre.
•For the safety of those with allergies, please refrain from using perfumes or scented products before coming to
the theatre.
•Please do not place backpacks or other bags in the aisle in front of your feet, as this may impair the ability of persons to exit the row in an emergency.
Inappropriate behavior:
Citadel Theatre representatives watch carefully during performances for inappropriate behavior, especially behavior that could endanger an actor or audience member. Inappropriate behavior includes, but is not limited to:
•Talking in the audience
•The use of laser pointers or other light or sound-emitting devices
•Interfering with an actor or the performance (tripping, throwing items on or near the stage, etc.)
Audience members identified as engaging in this type of behavior will be removed from the theatre during the performance or at intermission.
3
ALICE THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS
CAST, ARTISTIC TEAM AND CHARACTERS
CAST:
ELLIE HEATH
JAN ALEXANDRA SMITH
BETH GRAHAM
PATRICIA ZENTILLI
SHELDON ELTER
NADIEN CHU
KRISTI HANSEN
JESSE GERVAIS
SCOTT WALTERS
JOHN ULLYATT
ANDREW MacDONALD-SMITH
RICHARD HSI LEE
MATT ALDEN
FARREN TIMOTEO
NATHAN CUCKOW
Alice
Red Queen
White Queen
Gnat
White Knight
Fawn
Sheep in a Shop
Tweedledum
Tweedledee/Red Knight
Humpty
White King
Unicorn
Lion
Haigha
Hatta
CREATIVE TEAM
JILLIAN KEILEY
CHRISTINE BRUBAKER
BRETTA GERECKE
KIMBERLY PURTELL
JOHN GZOWSKI
JONATHAN MUNRO
MATTHEW MacINNIS
AL GADOWSKY
ERIN VALENTINE
Season Sponsor:
Original Director
Revival Director
Set and Costume Design
Lighting Design
Sound Design
Music Director/Composer
Stage Manager
Assistant Stage Manager
Apprentice Stage Manager
Presentation Sponsor:
Production Sponsor::
4
ALICE THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS
SYNOPSIS
The play begins with Alice playing with her little black kitten
by the fire on a sleepy winter’s afternoon. Alice takes it into
her head to climb through the mirror. She finds herself in an
even stranger place than she had anticipated: not only is
everything backwards, but chess pieces are alive, flowers talk,
and people and objects keep undergoing the most remarkable
transformations.
From the top of a nearby hill, Alice can see the whole of the
Looking-Glass world spread out before her, marked out like a
gigantic chess board. The Red Queen, a concentrated version
of the most intimidating sort of Victorian governess, tells Alice
that she may join the game as the White Queen’s Pawn; if she
can reach the Eighth Square, she will become a Queen herself.
Following the Red Queen’s directions, Alice takes a train
straight to the Fourth Square (for in chess, a pawn’s first move
can jump two squares at once) and before long finds herself at
the house of Tweedledum and Tweedledee. They tell her the
story of the Walrus and the Carpenter and show her the
sleeping Red King. “You’re only a sort of thing in his dream,”
they warn Alice. “If that there King was to wake, you’d go out Illustration of the White Knight, John Tenniel, 1871
– bang! – just like a candle!”
Next, Alice encounters the White Queen, who explains the pros and cons of living backwards in time,
before inexplicably changing into a sheep. Alice hears the story of the fearsome monster known as the
Jabberwock, and then argues about words and their meanings with Humpty Dumpty. While she is
conversing with the White King, a messenger arrives with the news that the Lion and the Unicorn are
once again fighting for the crown. Plum-cake is served, until the sound of drums drives everyone away.
Alice’s progress to the next square is interrupted by the Red Knight, who attempts to take her
prisoner. Fortunately, the White Knight – in whose kindly eccentricities many of Lewis Carroll’s readers
have detected a self-portrait by the author – comes to her rescue and entertains her with a song.
Arriving at last at the Eighth Square, Alice discovers that she is wearing a crown. The Red and White
Queens, however, refuse to accept her as a Queen until she has passed an examination. Though she
can make no sense of the questions, Alice nonetheless soon finds herself at a banquet in her honor
attended by all the Looking-Glass creatures. A toast is drunk to her health, but just as she is about to
return thanks, the Looking-Glass world dissolves, the Red Queen turns back into the little black kitten,
and Alice awakens from her dream. Or was it really her dream?
5
ALICE THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS
THE PLAYWRIGHT
JAMES REANEY
An award-winning Canadian poet, playwright,
children’s writer, librettist, English professor
and literary critic, James Crerar Reaney was
born to James Nesbitt Reaney and Elizabeth
Henrietta Crerar on a farm in Easthope, Ontario
(near Stratford), on September 1, 1926. In 1949,
Reaney received a Master’s degree in English
from the University of Toronto and began
teaching at the University of Manitoba in the
English Department. That same year, Reaney
received his first Governor General’s Award for
Red Heart, a book of poetry.
In 1951 Reaney married Colleen Thibaudeau, a
poet, and they had three children. He received
his PhD in 1958 from the University of Toronto;
his thesis advisor was Northrop Frye. That same year, Reaney earned his second Governor General’s
Award for another book of poetry, A Suit of Nettles. His Twelve Letters to a Small Town earned him his
third Governor General’s Award in 1962.
Reaney began teaching in London at the University of
Western Ontario in 1960 and started a journal that
published a variety of poets’ works, including Margaret
Atwood. At this time he also started to write dramatic
works, that included The Killdeer, Colours in the Dark
(produced at the Stratford Festival in 1967), Listen to the
Wind, Masks of Childhood as well as books and plays for
children. He wrote the trilogy The Donnellys: Sticks and
Stones, The St. Nicholas Hotel (which won the Chalmers
Award) and Handcuffs. Other works included Alice
Through the Looking-Glass (produced at the Stratford
Festival in 1994, 1996 and 2014). He also co-authored,
with musician John Beckwith, several operas. He received Cover of an early edition of “Twelve Letters To A Small
Town”
many honours and awards for his impressive body of work
throughout his lifetime, including being made an Officer
of
the Order of Canada in 1976. On June 11, 2008, Reaney died in London, Ontario. He is considered to be
one of the foremost leading figures in shaping Canadian literature.
6
ALICE THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS
THE AUTHOR (Children's Book)
LEWIS CARROLL
Charles Lutwidge Dodgson, better known by his pen
name, Lewis Carroll , was an English writer, mathematician,
logician, Anglican deacon, and photographer. Dodgson
attended Oxford University where is received First-Class
Honors in mathematics and graduated first in his class of with
a bachelor of arts. His most famous writings are Alice's
Adventures in Wonderland, its sequel Through the LookingGlass, which includes the poem Jabberwocky, and the
poem The Hunting of the Snark, all examples of the genre
of literary nonsense. He is noted for his facility at word play,
logic, and fantasy. There are societies in many parts of the
world dedicated to the enjoyment and promotion of his
works and the investigation of his life.
In 1856, a new dean, Henry Liddell, arrived at Christ Church
(constituent college of Oxford), bringing with him his young
family, all of whom would figure largely in Dodgson's life and,
over the following years, greatly influence his writing career.
Dodgson became close friends with Liddell's wife, Lorina, and
their children, particularly the three sisters: Lorina, Edith and
Alice Liddell. He was for many years widely assumed to have
derived his own "Alice" from Alice Liddell: the acrostic poem at
the end of Through the Looking Glass spells out her name in full,
and there are also many superficial references to her hidden in
the text of both books. It has been noted that Dodgson himself
repeatedly denied in later life that his "little heroine" was based
on any real child and he frequently dedicated his works to girls
of his acquaintance, adding their names in acrostic poems at the
beginning of the text. Gertrude Chataway's name appears in this
form at the beginning of The Hunting of the Snark, and it is not
suggested that this means that any of the characters in the
narrative are based on her.
By the time of Dodgson’s death, Alice had become the most
popular children's book in England, and by 1932 it was one of the
most popular in the world.
Alice Liddell photographed by Lewis Carroll
(1858)
7
ALICE THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS
AUTHOR Continued
FILM ADAPTAIONS OF CARROLL’S WORK
ALICE’S ADVENTURES IN WONDERLAND
Disney’s 2010 movie poster
Disney has made two film adaptations of Alice’s
Adventures in Wonderland, first in 1951, titled
Alice in Wonderland, and again in 2010, titled with
the same shortened name. The 1951 version,
although based mostly on the first of the two
books, also pulled a lot of elements from Alice
Through the Looking Glass, such as the poem
about the Walrus and the Carpenter and the use of
characters like the talking flowers, Tweedledee
and Tweedledum. The 2009 version also lends
itself some of these characters and generates it’s Disney’s 1951 movie poster
own original story elements. The heavily adapted story line has a nineteen
year old Alice being summoned through the rabbit hole because she alone can
save the White Queen from the Jabberwocky (a fictional beast that does not
get mentioned in Carroll’s work until Alice Through the Looking Glass).
ALICE THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS
In 1998 a made for TV movie version of Alice Through the
Looking Glass was released. This adaptation sticks pretty close
to the original text, and can be appreciated by adults, but did
not go over well with children.
Disney has started production on the sequel to their 2010 Alice
film, set to be released in May 2016, titled Alice in Wonderland:
Through the Looking Glass. Because it is a continuation of an
already adjusted story line, it can be assumed that the next
film will differ from the 1871 publication by Lewis Carroll. The
film will characterize time as the villain, which is a pressing
theme that Alice struggles with in the original Looking Glass
book.
Throughout the past century there have been over a dozen film
adaptations of both Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and Alice
Through the Looking Glass, the first of the two being the most
popularly recreated.
1998 movie poster
8
ALICE THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS
POEMS WITHIN THE WORK
JABBERWOCKY
`Twas brillig, and the slithy toves
Did gyre and gimble in the wabe:
All mimsy were the borogoves,
And the mome raths outgrabe.
"Beware the Jabberwock, my son!
The jaws that bite, the claws that catch!
Beware the Jubjub bird, and shun
The frumious Bandersnatch!"
He took his vorpal sword in hand:
Long time the manxome foe he sought -So rested he by the Tumtum tree,
And stood awhile in thought.
And, as in uffish thought he stood,
The Jabberwock, with eyes of flame,
Came whiffling through the tulgey wood,
And burbled as it came!
One, two! One, two! And through and through
The vorpal blade went snicker-snack!
He left it dead, and with its head
He went galumphing back.
Illustration of a Jabberwocky done by John Tenniel for Lewis
Carroll’s “Through the Looking Glass”
"And, has thou slain the Jabberwock?
Come to my arms, my beamish boy!
O frabjous day! Callooh! Callay!'
He chortled in his joy.
HUMPTY DUMPTY
`Twas brillig, and the slithy toves
Did gyre and gimble in the wabe;
All mimsy were the borogoves,
And the mome raths outgrabe.
Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall,
Humpty Dumpty had a great fall.
All the king's horses and all the king's men
Couldn't put Humpty together again
9
ALICE THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS
POEMS WITHIN THE WORK
THE WALRUS AND THE CARPENTER
The sun was shining on the sea,
Shining with all his might:
He did his very best to make
The billows smooth and bright-And this was odd, because it was
The middle of the night.
The eldest Oyster looked at him,
But never a word he said:
The eldest Oyster winked his eye,
And shook his heavy head-Meaning to say he did not choose
To leave the oyster-bed.
The moon was shining sulkily,
Because she thought the sun
Had got no business to be there
After the day was done-"It's very rude of him," she said,
"To come and spoil the fun!"
But four young Oysters hurried up,
All eager for the treat:
Their coats were brushed, their faces washed,
Their shoes were clean and neat-And this was odd, because, you know,
They hadn't any feet.
The sea was wet as wet could be,
The sands were dry as dry.
You could not see a cloud, because
No cloud was in the sky:
No birds were flying overhead-There were no birds to fly.
Four other Oysters followed them,
And yet another four;
And thick and fast they came at last,
And more, and more, and more-All hopping through the frothy waves,
And scrambling to the shore.
The Walrus and the Carpenter
Were walking close at hand;
They wept like anything to see
Such quantities of sand:
"If this were only cleared away,"
They said, "it would be grand!"
The Walrus and the Carpenter
Walked on a mile or so,
And then they rested on a rock
Conveniently low:
And all the little Oysters stood
And waited in a row.
"If seven maids with seven mops
Swept it for half a year.
Do you suppose," the Walrus said,
"That they could get it clear?"
"I doubt it," said the Carpenter,
And shed a bitter tear.
"The time has come," the Walrus said,
"To talk of many things:
Of shoes--and ships--and sealing-wax-Of cabbages--and kings-And why the sea is boiling hot-And whether pigs have wings."
"O Oysters, come and walk with us!"
The Walrus did beseech.
"A pleasant walk, a pleasant talk,
Along the briny beach:
We cannot do with more than four,
To give a hand to each."
"But wait a bit," the Oysters cried,
"Before we have our chat;
For some of us are out of breath,
And all of us are fat!"
"No hurry!" said the Carpenter.
They thanked him much for that.
10
ALICE THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS
POEMS WITHIN THE WORK
THE WALRUS AND THE CARPENTER (Continued)
"A loaf of bread," the Walrus said,
"Is what we chiefly need:
Pepper and vinegar besides
Are very good indeed-Now if you're ready, Oysters dear,
We can begin to feed."
"It seems a shame," the Walrus said,
"To play them such a trick,
After we've brought them out so far,
And made them trot so quick!"
The Carpenter said nothing but
"The butter's spread too thick!"
"But not on us!" the Oysters cried,
Turning a little blue.
"After such kindness, that would be
A dismal thing to do!"
"The night is fine," the Walrus said.
"Do you admire the view?
"I weep for you," the Walrus said:
"I deeply sympathize."
With sobs and tears he sorted out
Those of the largest size,
Holding his pocket-handkerchief
Before his streaming eyes.
"It was so kind of you to come!
And you are very nice!"
The Carpenter said nothing but
"Cut us another slice:
I wish you were not quite so deaf-I've had to ask you twice!"
"O Oysters," said the Carpenter,
"You've had a pleasant run!
Shall we be trotting home again?'
But answer came there none-And this was scarcely odd, because
They'd eaten every one.
Illustration of The Walrus and the Carpenter done by John Tenniel for Lewis Carroll’s
“Through the Looking Glass”
11
ALICE THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS
POEMS WITHIN THE WORK
HUMPTY DUMPTY’S RECITATION
In winter, when the fields are white,
I sing this song for your delight In spring, when woods are getting green,
I'll try and tell you what I mean.
In summer, when the days are long,
Perhaps you'll understand the song:
In autumn, when the leaves are brown,
Take pen and ink, and write it down.
I sent a message to the fish:
I told them 'This is what I wish.'
The little fishes of the sea
They sent an answer back to me.
The little fishes' answer was
'We cannot do it, Sir, because - '
I said to him, I said it plain,
'Then you must wake them up again.'
I said it very loud and clear;
I went and shouted in his ear.
But he was very stiff and proud;
He said 'You needn't shout so loud!'
And he was very proud and stiff;
He said 'I'd go and wake them, if -'
I took a corkscrew from the shelf:
I went to wake them up myself.
And when I found the door was locked,
I pulled and pushed and kicked and knocked.
And when I found the door was shut
I tried to turn the handle, but -
I sent to them again to say
'It will be better to obey.'
The fishes answered with a grin
'Why, what a temper you are in!'
I told them once, I told them twice;
They would not listen to advice.
I took a kettle large and new,
Fit for the deed I had to do,
My heart went hop, my heart went thump;
I filled the kettle at the pump.
Then some one came to me and said,
'The little fishes are in bed.'
Illustration od Humpty Dumpty by John
Tenniel
12
ALICE THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS
POEMS WITHIN THE WORK
I’LL TELL YOU EVERYTHING I CAN
I’ll tell thee everything I can;
There's little to relate,
I saw an aged, aged man,
A-sitting on a gate.
"Who are you, aged man?" I said.
"And how is it you live?"
And his answer trickled through my head
Like water through a sieve.
He said, "I look for butterflies
That sleep among the wheat;
I make them into mutton-pies,
And sell them in the street.
I sell them unto men," he said,
"Who sail on stormy seas;
And that's the way I get my bread-A trifle, if you please."
But I was thinking of a plan
To dye one's whiskers green,
And always use so large a fan
That they could not be seen.
So, having no reply to give
To what the old man said,
I cried, "Come, tell me how you live!"
And thumped him on the head.
His accents mild took up the tale;
He said, "I go my ways,
And when I find a mountain-rill,
I set it in a blaze;
And thence they make a stuff they call
Rowland's Macassar Oil-Yet twopence-halfpenny is all
They give me for my toil."
But I was thinking of a way
To feed one's self on batter,
And so go on from day to day
Getting a little fatter.
I shook him well from side to side,
Until his face was blue,
"Come, tell me how you live," I cried,
"And what it is you do!"
He said, "I hunt for haddocks' eyes
Among the heather bright,
And work them into waistcoat-buttons
In the silent night.
And these I do not sell for gold
Or coin of silvery shine,
But for a copper halfpenny,
And that will purchase nine.
"I sometimes dig for buttered rolls,
Or set limed twigs for crabs;
I sometimes search the grassy knolls
For wheels of hansom-cabs.
And that's the way" (he gave a wink)
"By which I get my wealth-And very gladly will I drink
Your honor's noble health."
I heard him then, for I had just
Completed my design
To keep the Menai bridge from rust
By boiling it in wine.
I thanked him much for telling me
The way he got his wealth,
But chiefly for his wish that he
Might drink my noble health.
And now, if e'er by chance I put
My fingers into glue,
Or madly squeeze a right-hand foot
Into a left-hand shoe,
Or if I drop upon my toe
A very heavy weight,
I weep, for it reminds me so
Of that old man I used to know-Whose look was mild, whose speech was slow,
Whose hair was whiter than the snow,
Whose face was very like a crow,
With eyes, like cinders, all aglow,
Who seemed distracted with his woe,
Who rocked his body to and fro,
And muttered mumblingly and low,
As if his mouth were full of dough,
Who snorted like
a buffalo-That summer
evening long ago,
A-sitting on a
gate.
Illustration of the White Night and a man on a gate by
13
ALICE THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS
SCRIPT REFERENCES
ORIGINS OF HUMPTY DUMPTY
As you may have noticed, in the “Humpty Dumpty”
nursery rhyme, nowhere does it say that Humpty is
an egg, yet he is often presented as such in pictures
and stories. There is a lot of speculation over the
origins of the character, Humpty Dumpty, and the
meaning behind the popular nursery rhyme. The first
time the character of Humpty Dumpty was
represented explicitly as an egg was in Lewis
Carroll’s Through the Looking Glass in 1872.
The first known publication of Humpty Dumpty was
included in Juvenile Amusements by Samuel Arnold
in 1797. In that version, the last lines read
“Fourscore men and fourscore more / could not
make Humpty Dumpty where he was before.” Over
Illustration of Humpty Dumpty done by John Tenniel for
“Through the Looking Glass”
the next century, the rhyme appeared in numerous
books with variations on the lyrics. These publications
did not include the first use of the term “humpty
dumpty,” though. According to the Oxford English Dictionary, “humpty dumpty” was first used in
the 17th century and referred to brandy boiled with ale. In the 1700s, it was also a term used to
describe a short, clumsy person.
As the popular nursery rhyme is neither a bottle of alcohol nor a person, it is most likely that the
nursery rhyme was intended as a riddle. The answer to the riddle, of course, is “an egg”—
something that, if it rolled off a wall, could not be mended by any number of people. Today, the
answer is so well known that the character of Humpty Dumpty has taken on the appearance of an
egg and the rhyme is not considered to be a riddle at all, but a story.
One of the most popular theories links Humpty Dumpty to the historical event, the Fall of
Colchester. During the English Civil War in 1648, the town of Colchester was under siege.
Supposedly, a man named Jack Thompson was stationed on the walls with a cannon nicknamed
“Humpty Dumpty.” Thompson and the cannon managed to do a lot of damage to the advancing
Parliamentarian troops, until the cannon eventually tumbled to the ground. Given the size and
weight of the cannon, the dozens of men who attempted to lift it back to its place on the wall
were unable to do so. Eventually, Colchester was forced to open its gates and surrender.
14
ALICE THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS
THEMES
CHESS
Alice’s Adventure in Wonderland has the deck of cards as a theme, whereas Through the Looking Glass is
based on a game of chess, played on a giant chessboard with fields for squares. Most main characters in
the story are represented by a chess piece or animals, with Alice herself being a pawn.
The looking-glass world is divided into sections by brooks or streams, with the crossing of each brook
usually signifying a notable change in the scene and action of the story: the brooks represent the divisions
between squares on the chessboard, and Alice's crossing of them signifies advancing of her piece one
square. Furthermore, since the brook-crossings do not
always correspond to the beginning and ends of chapters
in Lewis Carroll's book, most editions visually represent
the crossings by breaking the text with several lines of
asterisks ( * * * ). The sequence of moves (white and red)
is not always followed.
Within the framework of the chess game, Alice has little
control over the trajectory of her life, and outside forces
influence her choices and actions. Just as Alice exerts
little control of her movement toward becoming a
queen, she has no power over her inevitable maturation
and acceptance of womanhood. At the beginning of the
game, Alice acts as a pawn with limited perspective of
the world around her. She has limited power to influence
outcomes and does not fully understand the rules of the
game, so an unseen hand guides her along her journey,
constructing different situations and encounters that
push her along toward her goal. Though she wants to
become a queen, she must follow the predetermined
rules of the chess game, and she frequently discovers
that every step she takes toward her goal occurs because
of outside forces acting upon her, such as the mysterious
train ride and her rescue by the White Knight. By using
the chess game as the guiding principle of the narrative,
Carroll suggest that a larger force guides individuals
From left: Rylan Wilkie as Chorus Alice, Trish Lindström as Alice
through life and that all events are preordained. In this
and Cynthia Dale as the Red Queen in “Alice Through the Lookdeterministic concept of life, free will is an illusion and
ing-Glass” at the Stratford Festival 2014. Photo by Cylla von
individual choices are bound by rigidly determined rules
Tiedemann.
and guided by an overarching, unseen force.
15
ALICE THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS
THEMES Cont.
YOUTH
The Alice books celebrate youth as a time when the
individual is open to imaginative possibilities.
Childhood is praised, not exactly as a period of
innocence, but as a state in which many things are
possible. Children can't help growing up, but they
can refuse to grow old, and even old men can
maintain a youthful outlook by preserving a spirit of
nonsense and adventure. One can be either too
young or too old, and the best course seems to be
digging in one's heels and insisting on remaining as
childlike as possible. Growth is depicted as out of
one's control, but emotional growth can, perhaps, be
resisted. Adulthood in Alice Through the Looking
Glass seems almost ridiculous in contrast with youth;
Alice helping the White Night out of a ditch. Illustration by John
adults are bossy know-it-alls who like to throw their Tenniel For Lewis Carroll’s “Alice Through the Looking Glass”
weight around and rain on the parades of the young.
IDENTITY
Identity in Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass is constantly shifting. Its
instability creates anxiety and confusion, but also enables another kind of exploration. We must question
what it is that really constitutes identity – names, behaviors, abilities, knowledge, beliefs, or something
else. In addition, it is easy to split identities, to understand both sides of an issue or to feel like several
personalities are struggling within one person. The reader, like the protagonist, must continually question
her own identity and admit that she is uncertain about it in order to make progress in her quest.
LANGUAGE AND COMMUNICATION
In the play, language continually fails to provide an adequate means of communication. In fact, the
complex and confusing nature of language frequently leads to miscommunication. Often this
miscommunication is due to rival interpretations of the same words or sounds, such as mixing up words
that sound the same but have different meanings (homophones), taking metaphors literally, or mixing
different languages. In the most extreme cases, communication is impossible because one party to the
conversation has a completely different idea of what is being said than the other. However, these
miscommunications are the source of comedy and amusement rather than actual harm. The narrator and
the reader take a special joy in the multiple meanings that can be found in language.
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ALICE THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS
PRODUCTION ELEMENTS
PROSCENIUM STAGE
A proscenium theatre is a specific style of theatre. Several features define a proscenium theatre, and this particular
theatre layout is extremely common; if you have ever been to see a live performance, especially in a high school auditorium, chances are high that you have seen a proscenium theatre. In addition to proscenium style theatres, it is also possible to find black box theatres, theatres with thrust stages, theatres in the round, and numerous other configurations
of stage and audience.
The classically defining feature of a proscenium theatre is the proscenium arch which frames the stage for the audience. In addition, the audience faces the stage directly, with no audience on the sides of the stage, and the stage in a
proscenium theatre is typically raised, allowing the audience to see more clearly. Modern proscenium theatres sometimes lack the proscenium arch, but they are still called “proscenium theatres” because they retain the other characteristics of this style of theatre.
Proscenium theatres originated in the 1600s, and became immensely popular by the 1700s. There are certain advantages
of a proscenium theatre, such as the fact that the stage doesn't have to be as open, allowing people to conceal props,
sets, and orchestras in the wings or near the stage without having these things visible to the audience. A proscenium
theatre also creates a sense of staged grandeur, with the proscenium arch acting almost like a picture frame, giving the
audience the sense that they are looking into a scene.
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ALICE THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS
QUESTIONS FOR DISCUSSION
Before seeing Alice Through the Looking-Glass:

What do you expect to see on stage? Have each student make a list of predictions about what they expect. Save these predictions.
After your visit to the Citadel revisit them to see how they compared to the actual production.

What are people’s expectations about growing up? How do you feel about this? What are some good things about growing up,
maturing and becoming adults? What are some things you would like to change?

Are dreams important to you? Are they important in our society?
After your trip to the Citadel Theatre:

What is the significance of having Alice move through various spaces on a giant chessboard?

Discuss the way the characters in Alice Through the Looking-Glass treated Alice.

What parts did you respond to most while watching Alice Through the Looking-Glass? Why?

Were there parts you wished were different? How?
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ALICE THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS
REFERENCES/FURTHER READING
Stratford School Guide https://www.stratfordfestival.ca/uploadedFiles/Stratford/Education_and_Training/Teachers/Alice%
20Through%20the%20Looking-Glass%20Study%20Guide.pdf
Humpty Dumpty http://www.todayifoundout.com/index.php/2013/04/the-origin-of-humpty-dumpty/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Humpty_Dumpty
Chess http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/through-the-looking-glass/themes.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Through_the_Looking-Glass
Lewis Carroll https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lewis_Carroll
http://www.biography.com/people/lewis-carroll-9239598
James Reaney http://www.jamesreaney.com/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Reaney
Alice in Wonderland (1951) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alice_in_Wonderland_(1951_film)
Alice in Wonderland (2010) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alice_in_Wonderland_(2010_film)
Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alice's_Adventures_in_Wonderland
Alice Through the Looking Glass (1998) http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0167758/
http://www.dvdverdict.com/reviews/alicethroughlookingglass.php
Alice in Wonderland: Through the Looking Glass (2016) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alice_Through_the_Looking_Glass_(film)
Humpty Dumpty’s Recitation http://ingeb.org/songs/inwinter.html
I’ll Tell you Everything I Can http://www.poetry-archive.com/c/ill_tell_thee_everything_i_can.html
The Walrus and the Carpenter http://www.jabberwocky.com/carroll/walrus.html
Jabberwocky http://www.jabberwocky.com/carroll/jabber/jabberwocky.html
Themes: Youth http://www.shmoop.com/alice-in-wonderland-looking-glass/youth-theme.html
Themes: language and communication http://www.shmoop.com/alice-in-wonderland-looking-glass/language-communicationtheme.html
Themes: Identity http://www.shmoop.com/alice-in-wonderland-looking-glass/identity-theme.html
Themes:
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ALICE THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS
CURRICULUM ALIGNMENT
Curriculum Connections:
Participation as an audience member at the Citadel Theatre aligns with the Alberta Education Curriculum. We’ve outline
below some (but not limited to) objectives which are developed through the viewing of live theatre:
Drama (Elementary)
Third Goal
To foster an appreciation for drama as an art form
Objectives
The child should:
1. develop an awareness of an respect for potential excellence in self and others
2. Develop a capacity to analyze, evaluate and synthesize ideas and experiences
3. Develop an awareness and appreciation of the variety of dramatic forms of expression.
Specific Learner Expectations:
Intellectual—develop and exercise imagination; develop concentration
Emotional—explore emotion; control emotion; express emotion
Social—understand others; discipline self; develop appreciation of the work of self and others; cope with emotional responses
Integrative—learn to respond to stimuli; e.g., music, pictures, objects, literature; test and reflect on the consequences of
dramatic decisions
Drama (Junior High)
GOAL I
To acquire knowledge of self and others through participation in and reflection on dramatic experience.
Objectives
The student will:
• strengthen powers of concentration
• extend the ability to think imaginatively and creatively
• extend the ability to explore, control and express emotions
• extend the ability to explore meaning through abstract concepts

develop the ability to offer and accept constructive criticism
GOAL III
To develop an appreciation for drama and theatre as a process and art form.
Objectives
The student will:

develop awareness of various conventions of theatre

develop awareness of drama and theatre by viewing as great a variety of theatrical presentations as possible

develop the ability to analyze and assess the process and the art

develop recognition of and respect for excellence in drama and theatre
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ALICE THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS
CURRICULUM ALIGNMENT
Drama 10-20-30
GOAL I
To acquire knowledge of self and others through participation in and reflection on dramatic experience.
Objectives
The Student will:

extend the ability to concentrate

extend understanding of, acceptance of and empathy for others

demonstrate respect for others — their rights, ideas, abilities and differences (S)

demonstrate the ability to offer, accept, and reflect upon, constructive criticism.
GOAL II
To develop competency in communication skills through participation in and exploration of various dramatic disciplines.
Objectives
The Student will:

demonstrate understanding of integration of disciplines to enrich a theatrical presentation.
GOAL III
To develop an appreciation of drama and theatre as a process and art form.
Objectives
The student will:
• explore various conventions and traditions of theatre
• broaden knowledge of theatre by viewing as great a variety of theatrical presentations as possible (
• demonstrate the ability to assess critically the process and the art
• demonstrate recognition of and respect for excellence in drama and theatre
• develop an awareness of aesthetics in visual and performing arts.
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