The doctor in wonderland
Last night’s performance at Conservatoire East was beyond extraordinary. The story of “Dr What” and his female companion “Cara” finding themselves crashing into a new world the residents claimed to be “Wonderland” really captured the brilliance, and curiosity of these two franchises together.
The Doctor in Wonderland is a parodic spin on both “Doctor Who” and “Alice in Wonderland” directed by Emily Scott and written by Don Zolidis, performed here at West Suffolk College.
cast shot taken by Tony Kelly.
The story starts when Cara (Olywin Viola) crashes into a Planet, leaving the “Telephone Box” in a state of disrepair, and the Doctor (Masha Skinner) in disbelief and muted rage.
The doctor begins to fix his spaceship, at which time Cara is whisked away by the White Rabbit (Lucy Hughes). Effortlessly creating a wild goose chase, where the Doctor is on a mission to try and find his lost companion, resulting in them both being held captive by the Red Queen (Bethan Salmons) and eventually leading to a trial for beheading…
The end of the play was beautifully performed, with the audience at the edge of their seats for the Doctor and Cara’s impending beheading, but as fate would have it - the day was saved by a friendly Mechanic Walrus (Sophia Desira) the Doctor had encountered earlier, who had offered to fix the Telephone Box for the unfortunate pair.
The stage was lit up beautifully, with the main stage gleaming with shades of red; a trellis’ cultivated with white and red roses, giant human-sized mushrooms, and the beloved blue “telephone box” in one corner of the stage. This setting captivated the weirdness and wonderfulness both franchises have to offer; making you immediately feel like you were in Wonderland itself!
In the performance, all you can admire is the confidence and professionalism radiating from each member. This, accompanied by the short space of time each cast member has had to rehearse, really makes you appreciate the amount of effort everyone has put into making the play a successful show! In addition to this, the character’s excellent costume design really helped decipher which actor was portraying whom - using innovative and creative design choices to dress actors colour-coordinated to their character, as well as using props to give extra clarification.
The script-writing, courtesy of Don Zolidis, was humorous and witty, with inuendos planted throughout the play leaving the audience giggling and smiling throughout. The actors’ deliverance on the lines also contributed massively to the hilarity of the show - in which they captivated their characters and embedded themselves in their roles in unique ways.
The play will continue to be played at West Suffolk College from 2nd November to 4th November with tickets from £14.