Alice in Wonderland – Sunday May 1st at Opera House in Marlinton

On Sunday, May 1st at 2:00 p.m., the Pocahontas County Opera House presents a special children’s performance of Lewis Carroll’s “Alice in Wonderland”. Brynn Kusic, the Operations Manager of the Opera House tells us about the performance.

“This Sunday we are very excited to present a Children’s Theater presentation – although adults would be more than welcome will also enjoy the performance- of ‘Alice in Wonderland’” said Brynn. “This is a particular company from New Hampshire, the Hampstead Stage Company. Their mission is to bring children’s books to life.”

Brynn extols the excellence of the performance the Hampstead Stage Company did the last time they performed here.

“In December we were able to welcome the Hampstead Stage company to the Opera House for the first time to present ‘A Christmas Carol’” said Brynn. “They just did such an excellent job that we were excited to welcome them back to present ‘Alice in Wonderland’.”

This production of Alice in Wonderland’ fits this stage company perfectly, as Brynn explains.

“’Alice in Wonderland’ is a wonderful story of discovery and imagination” Brynn says. “This is a wonderful choice for the theater company as they only bring two actors –I think it is an actor and an actress- and they are able to create all of the characters in the story on the stage. They do an incredible job. They are all professional theater performers, they love to do this work, and you can see it on the stage. All of the costume changes happen behind a screen, but you don’t even notice the transitions because the actors and actresses are so captivating.”

Brynn talks about why you might want to arrive early.

“The women’s Club is going to bring refreshments to this event” Brynn said. “they are having a tea party theme, so if folks come a little bit early they can have a little treat and maybe a cup of tea or something warm as provided by the Women’s Club. First energy is our community sponsor for this event and this is a wonderful thing that they are helping the Opera House to provide more children’s theater and performances that are geared toward audiences with young families and kids and theater enthusiasts.”

And you might just find your kid up on stage with the actors.

“The last time the Hampstead Theater Company came through, they invited participants from the audience” Brynn says. “Now this is a very special selection process, as they choose their volunteers wisely. Students last time were on the stage for almost half of the production. They came out at the end and took a bow just like the actors and actresses. They were a great part of the event.”

Brynn wanted to encourage parents to expose their kids to this type of performance. Brynn.

“Bringing your kids to the theater is a wonderful, wonderful opportunity for them to have quality performances that they might only be able to see in cities or bigger towns, right here in Pocahontas County” Brynn said. “When children come to the theater or come to a musical event they often remember it for the rest of their lives. It can inspire them into participating in the arts in the future. So we strongly believe in having programming geared towards kids at the Opera House so that our students can get a chance to experience what performing arts is all about. And they always love it, so we know it’s a wonderful opportunity for them.”

Brynn says that tickets are available at the door, and are $5.00 for adults and free for kids 17 years old and younger. Remember though, this performance, unlike most at the Opera House, is on a Sunday, that’s May first at 2 p.m.