The Lambert Puppet Theatre, celebrating its 25th anniversary in Monkstown, has come up with something special: a revival, just as it was for that memorable opening, of the production of Alice in Wonderland. Time has stood still for it. The same puppets bob about frantically and funnily, and the voices are the original ones from a tape which, enhanced through technology, preserves a unique piece of the past.
Those nostalgic voices include Micheal MacLiammoir and Hilton Edwards, as the Cheshire Cat and Caterpillar, respectively; Rachel Burrows as the Duchess; Nora O'Mahony as the off-with-their-heads Queen; Clare Mullen as the Dormouse; Bill Golding as the Mad Hatter and others; and Eugene Lambert as the March Hare and many more. Aficion ados should recognise at least some of them.
The illusions are those of puppetry at its best. Alice falls, and falls, down a rabbit hole, and thereafter grows and shrinks in bewildering cycles. A rabbit is late for an appointment, tears turn into a torrent, a caterpillar advises, a Cheshire cat smiles from a tree, and there is a mad tea party. Croquet is played using birds as mallets, a turtle tells a tale, a court scene unfolds and Alice returns home. It is a romp with a literary and stage difference.
The puppet designs were taken from Tenniel drawings and made in the Lambert workshops, while the inventive sets were drawn by Wendy Shea.
Inquiries about the Lambert Puppet Theatre's Christmas show: 01-2800974