‘Alice in Wonderland’ takes a spin at Drayton Hall Theatre

The University of South Carolina Dance Conservatory’s upcoming production of “Alice in Wonderland” promises to be on pointe this coming weekend.

The conservatory will present the classic tale in ballet form May 22-23 at Drayton Hall Theatre, 1214 College St. Columbia.

The production offers a trip through Lewis Carroll’s beloved story of a girl who descends down a rabbit hole and emerges into a magical, mysterious world filled with both delight and danger. As she tries to find a way home, Alice encounters such familiar characters as the White Rabbit, the Mad Hatter, the Cheshire Cat and the devious Queen of Hearts, among other fantastical creatures.

The ballet is set to Carl Davis’ arrangement of several Tschaikovsky works and was originally commissioned by the English National Ballet for its version of the Alice story.

Alice will be portrayed by conservatory instructor Ashley Mallory, a 2014 graduate of the dance program. The show is choreographed by USC Dance Conservatory administrative director Kerri Lambert and instructor Melinda Rawlinson.

“We wanted to make it both playful and surreal, just like the book, with something for everyone to enjoy,” Lambert said of the production.

Show times are 6 p.m. Friday, May 22 and 2 p.m. Saturday, May 23. Tickets are $12 for all ages, and available at the university dance studios at 324 Sumter St. 3:30-7:30 p.m. Monday-Friday or by calling (803) 777-5636.

Columbia Children’s 2015-16 season auditions

Columbia Children’s Theatre will hold auditions for its 2015-2016 season this coming weekend.

Auditions will be 6:30-8:30 p.m. Friday, May 22 and 3-5 p.m. Sunday, May 24 in the theater on the second level of Richland Mall, 3400 Forest Drive.

Auditions are open to adult actors and teens who will be at least 15 years old by Sept. 21. All actors are paid positions.

Auditions will be drop-in style. Performers are asked to prepare 16-24 bars of a Broadway-type song to be sung a capella and may be asked to vocalize with piano. There also will be readings from next season’s scripts.

A monologue is not required but can be performed if desired.

Those auditioning are asked to bring their current head and shoulders shot and resume.

CCT’s 2015-2016 season includes “Click Clack Moo: Cows That Type” (September), “Jingle Arrrgh The Way” (December), Mo Willem’s “Elephant and Piggie: We’re in a Show” (February), “Seussical”(April), and “The Commedia Hansel and Gretel”(June).

The theatre will also cast two productions ‑ Rudyard Kipling’s “Just So Stories” and a combined version of Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Julie and Macbeth.” ‑ with its new touring arm, The CCT Storykeepers.

For questions, call CCT artistic director, Jerry Stevenson at (803) 691-4548 or email jerry@columbiachildrenstheatre.com.

This story was originally published May 14, 2015 at 1:19 PM with the headline "‘Alice in Wonderland’ takes a spin at Drayton Hall Theatre."