Alice by Heart
“Be not afraid of madness.”
Tisch New Theatre proudly presents Alice by Heart for its Spring 2024 mainstage production
from the writers of the Tony Award-winning musical, Spring Awakening, and the Tony Award-nominated musical, Waitress.
FLASH WARNING. Click image to pause.
[Alt text: Flickering lights reveal a tan book page pasted on the dingy tiled wall of the London Underground. The book page reads: Alice by Heart, from the writers of Spring Awakening and Waitress. Tisch New Theatre. The book page’s top right corner flips down to reveal the text: Audition now.]
Above the concrete of the London streets, war has broken out.
As the British join the allied powers to fight against the Nazi regime, a whole other world lies below their feet. The London Tube has been transformed into a bunker where, for five years, millions and millions of people seek shelter. People lived, breathed, worked, slept, died, and survived in the underground, but most importantly, children grew up.
Join young Alice Spencer as she escapes from her London bunker in the center of World War II and into her favorite book: Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. In the midst of her literary adventure, she discovers that the line between fantasy and reality has blurred, forcing her to confront the world around her. What was once an escape turns into reality, as she uses the story to come to terms with love, loss, dreams, and death in war times.
Alice by Heart makes us question why we turn to stories in times of grief—and if we can ever truly get lost within them. When the story begins to slip away, what remains?
We will be performing at the Off-Broadway venue: Theater for the New City.
Cast
SAMANTHA CHU as ALICE
LEE BOWSER as ALICE UNDERSTUDY
SAM CUSSON as ALFRED/WHITE RABBIT/MARCH HARE
ISABELLA SCOLARO as NURSE/QUEEN OF HEARTS
BRAIDEN LEE as HAROLD/MAD HATTER/MOCK MOCK TURTLE
KEIRA BOTJER as TABATHA/ CHESHIRE CAT
AIDAN RYAN as DODGY/DUCHESS/MOCK MOCK MOCK MOCK TURTLE
MIA ROSE WILLIAMS as CLARISSA/MOCK MOCK MOCK TURTLE
HUDSON QUINN as NIGEL/DORMOUSE/KNAVE OF SPADES
ELIJAH DOR as ANGUS/CATERPILLAR
MICKEY WIRTZ as DR. BUTRIDGE/KING OF HEARTS/JABBERWOCK/MOCK TURTLE
NATALIA KANTNER as CATERPILLAR 2
JOSIE AXELSON as ENSEMBLE
AYDEN MAYA CHACKO as ENSEMBLE
Cast
Piano played by CHELSEA MELNICK | Bass Guitar played by NYA HOLMES | Guitar played by NOAH HOGAN | Guitar played by MILES TANNER | Drums played by SAM NOVOTNY | Drums played by ABIGAIL RODRIGUEZ | Violin played by PRISCILLA TAM | Trumpet played by RYAN CRITES
Production Team
Produced by LEAH FRANTZ in association with TISCH NEW THEATRE | Artistic Director JULIA FREITAS-GORDON | Production Managers BENOIT ELIAS-ROBERGE AND MOLLY LITVIN | General Manager and DEIA Co-Chair RACHEL LEE | DEIA Co-Chair HANNAH STOBER
Directed by JULIETTE MARKMAN | Associate Director ASTA TRIVEDI
Choreographed by ERIN AMSTEIN | Assistant Choreographers JAIDE MALONE and AUDREY RICHARDS
Music Directed by CHELSEA MELNICK | Assistant Music Directors ZOË FARAJIAN, MAYA KILE, and NYA HOLMES
Production Stage Manager JESSE YOUNGSTEIN | Stage Manager ARYANA PIROS | Assistant Stage Manager ISABELLE ORMSBY
Technical Director NAVEEN BANGALORE | Assistant Production Manager ESME CUAUTLE | Head of Scenic Design WENDY ZHANG | Associate Scenic Designers DYLAN DUGOURD and Z WECHSLER | Props Designers TAYLOR WILLIAMS and ELI KAN | Lighting Designer BENOIT ELIAS-ROBERGE | Assistant Lighting Designer and Lightboard Operator SARAH CLARKE | Sound Designer ELLA DANYLUK | Assistant Sound Designer EMMA MCANINCH | Sound Board Operator TINA QIU | Costume Designer CAMILLA CARRASCO | Assistant Costume Designer MAXWELL GUTIERREZ | Hair and Makeup Designer EMMA LI | Intimacy Director SOFI LOPEZ ARRENDONDO | Dramaturg LAKE MERRITT | Dialect Coaches JOSE ROMERO and LUKERIA PETRUNINA | Assistant Producers SIGNY ACKERMANN and JAYLA EBANKS | Assistant Artistic Director IFE DAVIS | Head of Development JULIA LIPSZTEIN | Development Assistant MULTI MCMACKIN | Marketing Director ASPEN NARAIN | Marketing Assistant HANNAH STOBER | Photographers ARI ISENBERG, MASON JIN, JESS EICHEN, FRANCESCA DIMICELI, and AYDA BAHRAMPOUR | Videographers MARIA RENKAS and LUCY TIAN | Graphic Designers JINGWEI MU and RITZ FAN | Wardrobe Supervisor KADY NANKIVEL | Assistant Wardrobe CARTER NARANJO
Book by STEVEN SATER and JESSIE NELSON | Lyrics by STEVEN SATER | Music by DUNCAN SHEIK
Orchestrations by Duncan Sheik Additional Orchestrations by Vocal Arrangements by Simon HaleJason Hart Alice by Heart was first commissioned and produced by National Theatre Connections in 2012 Developed with the Assistance of Theatre Aspen, Aspen, Colorado A workshop production of Alice by Heart was presented by New York Stage and Film & Vassar at The Powerhouse Theater, Summer 2018 New York Premiere at the MCC Theater February 26, 2019 Artistic Directors: Robert LuPone, Bernard Telsey, & William Cantler Executive Director: Blake West. Alice by Heart Is presented through a special arrangement with Music Theatre International (MTI). All authorized performance materials are also supplied by MTI. www.mtishows.com
Follow us @tischnewtheatre for the latest updates.
Tisch New Theatre is dedicated to our mission of making student theatre accessible to all of NYU. TNT is committed to fostering a diverse company for all productions. Undergraduate students of all background and abilities are encouraged to apply.