Regardless of snowfall, a winter "Wonderland" can be found at the MACC starting Friday, Dec. 11 with the opening of its winter play. The Friday evening show begins at 7 p.m., followed by matinee showings Saturday and Sunday, Dec. 12-13 at 2 p.m.
Allie Pearce, left, and Eleanor Bryan star in "Wonderland" at the MACC."It's a wonderful holiday event for families," said Colleen Laliberte, the play's director. "It's a great time to be together and see live theater - people love to go out and go to the movies, but for kids to see other kids on stage I think is really a treat."
The play revolves around the misadventures of a girl named Alice, who is loosely based on the character of Alice in "Alice in Wonderland." In this version, the entire set is a chess board and the characters are chess pieces.
"All of the characters incorporate elements from her room and from her life," said Laliberte of Alice, a young girl who at the play's start drifts into a fantasy land because she does not want to stop reading her book when her mother tells her to. "It's all about her trying to become the queen. We all want to be the person in charge of our own lives."
Laliberte said she felt the play's theme fit well with the spirit of the holiday season.
"The idea is that anything is possible if you trust in your heart," she said.
"Wonderland" features 31 children from Signal Mountain ages 6-10, 18 of which have never been in a play at the MACC before.
"We often have a lot of students who come back," said Laliberte. "I think it's very exciting we have 18 brand new actors in this program."
Eleanor Bryan stars in the role of Alice.
"She took it very seriously and was very organized in memorizing her lines, which was quite a large task for a fifth-grader because she's on stage the entire time," said Laliberte.
Noah Huseman, a longtime veteran of the MACC's winter productions, takes on the play's other lead role as Humpty Dumpty with a western edge.