'Alice in Wonderland'

Glacier High School’s Wolfpack Theatre Co. will take a tumble down the rabbit hole May 4 and 5 with the children’s classic “Alice in Wonderland.”

Shows will begin at 6:33 p.m. each night at the high school. Tickets are $7 for adults and $5 for children, students and seniors, and area available at the school and Photo Video Plus in Kalispell.

This one-hour version by Anne Coulter Martens takes Alice, as well as the audience, through a maze of incredible adventures while she searches for the Queen’s stolen tarts. Along the way, Alice meets many of Wonderland’s iconic characters from Lewis Carroll’s memorable story, including the Cheshire Cat, the Mad Hatter, Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum, the Queen of Hearts and other strangely wonderful characters.

“Alice in Wonderland is all about the child’s mind,” Glacier senior and the play’s director, Abi Vanorny, said. “When we are young we have a boundless imagination where we are allowed to be curious and ask questions.

“We haven’t yet built a comfort zone in which we tend to hide. Alice is that step outside into adventure and wonder. We hope the audience walks away with the idea that although we all grow up we can always experience awe. As we grow, we learn understanding and gain wisdom. But there is never a time in which we should feel it is too late to be curious and experience amazing things.”

To recreate Carroll’s fantastical world, the show features moving set pieces, extravagant lighting and dynamic, comical characters straight from a child’s mind.

“This is a show for all audiences of all ages,” Vanorny said. “Alice will captivate the audience with an immersive set and spark their imagination. I encourage everyone to come.”

This production of Alice in Wonderland is produced by the Glacier High School’s Acting 4 class. In Acting 4, students are required to select, cast and produce a full-length play in six weeks under the supervision of class instructor Greg Adkins.

“It’s been pretty wild,” Vanorny said. “There is so much more than anyone thinks that goes into creating a show until you direct one. Being completely organized and responsible for every detail is both exhilarating and exhausting, but I can tell you that it is a rewarding feeling when you can see your peers and more importantly your friends enjoying what they are doing and doing it well.

“Our class ranges from very new actors to those who have been in an acting class six times and have been in 20-plus shows. But despite having a young and diverse class there’s so much talent in so many areas of our class there’s no doubt in my mind that my peers and my friends cannot excel and put on a wonderful show.

“I love being able to watch them grow and smile. We laugh but we also push each other to be better. There’s never a dull moment!”

The cast for this show includes Kenzie Berner, Tessa Ernsperger, Aleesha Hillis, Matthew Knuffke, Jordyn Morgan, Abbey Odell, Angelo Sabin, Skye Smith, Joel Stewart, Emma Trunkle, Abi Vanorny and Kenzie White as Alice.

Behind the scenes, Millie Espeseth, Jaden Woeppel, Nathan Mayhak, Aidan Fritz, Jon Sorensen, Robert Hurly, Logan Stencel, Kimberly Liles, Jaclynn Smith, Jez Schussler, Zach Hill, Nic Hannay, Alyssa Framness, Laney Wilson, Riley Wilton and Drew Fitzgerald make up the stage, lighting, costume and sound crews.