Royal Opera House (Covent Garden) tickets 21 October 2024 - Alice's Adventures in Wonderland | GoComGo.com

Alice's Adventures in Wonderland

Royal Opera House (Covent Garden), Main Stage, London, Great Britain
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7:30 PM
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US$ 124

E-tickets: Print at home or at the box office of the event if so specified. You will find more information in your booking confirmation email.

You can only select the category, and not the exact seats.
If you order 2 or 3 tickets: your seats will be next to each other.
If you order 4 or more tickets: your seats will be next to each other, or, if this is not possible, we will provide a combination of groups of seats (at least in pairs, for example 2+2 or 2+3).

Important Info
Type: Ballet
City: London, Great Britain
Starts at: 19:30

E-tickets: Print at home or at the box office of the event if so specified. You will find more information in your booking confirmation email.

You can only select the category, and not the exact seats.
If you order 2 or 3 tickets: your seats will be next to each other.
If you order 4 or more tickets: your seats will be next to each other, or, if this is not possible, we will provide a combination of groups of seats (at least in pairs, for example 2+2 or 2+3).

Cast
Performers
Ballet company: The Royal Ballet
First Soloist: Calvin Richardson (The Knave of Hearts)
Conductor: Koen Kessels
First Soloist: Meaghan Grace Hinkis (Alice)
Orchestra: Orchestra of the Royal Opera House
Creators
Composer: Joby Talbot
Choreographer: Christopher Wheeldon
Author: Lewis Carroll
Overview

Tumble down the rabbit hole in this ballet adaptation of Lewis Carroll’s famous family story.

Journey through Wonderland with Alice and encounter a host of curious characters in Christopher Wheeldon’s unique theatrical interpretation.

At a garden party on a sunny afternoon, Alice is surprised to see her parents’ friend Lewis Carroll transform into a white rabbit. When she follows him down a rabbit hole, events become curiouser and curiouser… 

As Alice journeys through Wonderland, she encounters countless strange creatures. She’s swept off her feet by the charming Knave of Hearts, who’s on the run for stealing the tarts.­ Confusion piles upon confusion. Then Alice wakes with a start. Was it all a daydream? 

BACKGROUND

CURIOSITIES COME TO LIFE 
From a mysterious Cheshire Cat and a tap-dancing tea party, to frogs acting as footmen and unknown potions that turn you tiny, many treats and eccentricities await in this weird and wonderful world. You never know what you might find when you fall down the rabbit hole.  

EVERYONE’S CUP OF TEA 
Christopher Wheeldon’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland burst onto the stage in 2011 in an explosion of colour, stage magic and inventive, sophisticated choreography. Joby Talbot’s score combines contemporary soundworlds with sweeping melodies that gesture to ballet scores of the 19th century. Bob Crowley’s wildly imaginative, eye-popping designs draw on everything from puppetry to projections to make Wonderland wonderfully real. The result shows The Royal Ballet at its best, bringing together world-class dance with enchanting family entertainment and ingenious music and design.

A CO-PRODUCTION BETWEEN The Royal Ballet and The National Ballet of Canada

History
Premiere of this production: 28 February 2011, Royal Opera House, London

Alice's Adventures in Wonderland is a ballet in three acts by Christopher Wheeldon with a scenario by Nicholas Wright, based on Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll. It was commissioned by The Royal Ballet, Covent Garden, and the National Ballet of Canada, and had its world premiere on Monday, 28 February 2011.

Synopsis

Alice is living at home with her beloved father, mother and brother, but the father dies unexpectedly. Eight years later, preparations are afoot for Alice’s engagement party. Alice, however, doesn’t want to get engaged. She sees the White Rabbit in a painting and follows him into the picture, which begins to spin. The entire room turns into a tunnel, resembling a bottomless well. The journey through it is strange yet fascinating. She is growing bigger – or is it that the things around her getting smaller?

Alice’s tears form a large pond. The creatures soaked by it try to get themselves dry in a crazy running race. Alice tries come up with rules for the race but fails and continues to chase the White Rabbit. As she meets the twins, Tweedledee and Tweedledum, she asks them how to find the White Rabbit and the way to the Queen’s garden.

Alice arrives at the house of the Duchess, where she’s received with hatred and condescension. When the Queen of Hearts invites the Duchess to take part in a game of croquet, the Duchess throws a baby into Alice’s arms and rushes off to get ready for the game. Alice soon notices that she’s taking care of a pig, not a baby. She then encounters the enchanting Butterfly and her friends. She asks her for advice on how to grow into a beautiful woman.

The White Knight is chasing the Queen’s Red Dragon, but he’s losing ground. Alice wants to help him, and the knight is full of gratitude.

Next, Alice finds a huge table set for a tea party. The party is attended by the Mad Hatter, the March Hare and the Dormouse, who claim there’s no room at the table for Alice. The White Rabbit makes the situation even more confusing. The watch has become upset and stopped at six in the evening, which means that the tea party will go on forever.   

Alice arrives at a meadow and gets a glimpse of her brother who’s being chased by the Queen of Hearts. She goes after the Queen of Hearts and her troops.

In the garden of the Queen of Hearts, the playing card gardeners who have accidentally planted white roses are trying to paint them red before the queen discovers their error. The Queen of Hearts arrives and orders the gardeners’ execution. She challenges Alice to a bizarre game of croquet but, annoyed at how the game is turning out, she orders everyone to be executed – including the Cheshire Cat, which the King would prefer to save. Alice suggests that they ask the opinion of the Duchess, the owner of the Cheshire Cat. By the time the Duchess arrives, however, the Cheshire Cat has disappeared.

The Queen has had the Knave of Hearts, Alice’s brother, imprisoned. The court case begins. The Knave of Hearts has been charged with stealing tarts baked by the Queen. The Mad Hatter and the Cook, serving as witnesses, cause a chaos, which enables Alice and the Knave of Hearts to escape.  

Alice and the White Knight fight a victorious battle against the Queen’s playing cards and her red dragon together.

The White Knight helps Alice get up the stairs out of Wonderland. Alice has grown and developed as a person. Her experiences in Wonderland have prepared her to face the world at home, where the entire adventure originally began.

Venue Info

Royal Opera House (Covent Garden) - London
Location   Bow St, Covent Garden

The Royal Opera House (ROH) is an opera house and major performing arts venue in London and Great Britain. It is the home of The Royal Opera, The Royal Ballet, and the Orchestra of the Royal Opera House.

The large building is often referred to as simply "Covent Garden", after a previous use of the site of the opera house's original construction in 1732. It is the home of The Royal Opera, The Royal Ballet, and the Orchestra of the Royal Opera House. Originally called the Theatre Royal, it served primarily as a playhouse for the first hundred years of its history. In 1734, the first ballet was presented. A year later, Handel's first season of operas began. Many of his operas and oratorios were specifically written for Covent Garden and had their premieres there.

The current building is the third theatre on the site following disastrous fires in 1808 and 1856. The façade, foyer, and auditorium date from 1858, but almost every other element of the present complex dates from an extensive reconstruction in the 1990s. The main auditorium seats 2,256 people, making it the third largest in London, and consists of four tiers of boxes and balconies and the amphitheatre gallery. The proscenium is 12.20 m wide and 14.80 m high. The main auditorium is a Grade I listed building.

The Royal Opera, under the direction of Antonio Pappano, is one of the world’s leading opera companies. Based in the iconic Covent Garden theatre, it is renowned both for its outstanding performances of traditional opera and for commissioning new works by today’s leading opera composers, such as Harrison Birtwistle, Mark-Anthony Turnage and Thomas Adès.

The Royal Ballet is one of the world’s greatest ballet companies. Under the directorship of Kevin O’Hare, the Company unites tradition and innovation in world-class performances at our Covent Garden home.

The Company’s extensive repertory embraces 19th-century classics, the singular legacy of works by Founder Choreographer Frederick Ashton and Principal Choreographer Kenneth MacMillan and a compelling new canon by Resident Choreographer Wayne McGregor and Artistic Associate Christopher Wheeldon.

The Orchestra performs in concerts of their own, including performances at the Royal Opera House with Antonio Pappano. They have also performed at venues worldwide including Symphony Hall (Birmingham), Cadogan Hall, the Vienna Konzerthaus and on tour with The Royal Opera.

Members of the Orchestra play an active role in events across the Royal Opera House, including working with the Learning and Participation teams. The Orchestra accompanies performances that are streamed all over the world, including through cinema screenings and broadcasts. They appear on many CDs and DVDs including Pappano’s acclaimed studio recording of Tristan und Isolde with Plácido Domingo and Nina Stemme.

The Orchestra of the Royal Opera House was founded in 1946 when the Royal Opera House reopened after World War II.

Important Info
Type: Ballet
City: London, Great Britain
Starts at: 19:30
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