World Premiere of an abbey theatre presentation
Alice in Funderland
Book and lyrics by Phillip McMahon
Composed by Raymond Scannell
Directed by Wayne Jordan
Video design by Jack Phelan
The Abbey Stage
30 March-12 May 2012
Tickets on sale now
It is with enormous pride that we announce an Abbey presentation of our musical Alice in Funderland. This world premiere, an orginal THISISPOPBABY commission, is the culmination of four year's sweat, tears, pain and joy.
What the flyer says...
Unlucky in love and tied up in knots, Corkonian Alice is all set for her sister’s wedding (always the bridesmaid and never the bride), when a chance encounter with delivery boy Warren sends her spiralling through the Dublin night.
In an epic pursuit for meaning on the strangest night of her life, Alice tumbles through the broken city, bombarded by grinning politicians, pyjamaclad bowsies, egg heads on the edge, twisted scissor sisters, and Delores – The Queen of Hartstown.
Things sure ain’t what they used to be. The looking glass is well and truly cracked. But is true love possible on the other side… or is this town just full of clowns?
Originally commissioned and developed by THISISPOPBABY, and bringing together some of the most exciting rising Irish artists of this generation, the Abbey Theatre presents a modern day fairy tale for a tender and bruised nation. Explosive tunes, standout characters and crackling action, this is the world premiere of an essential and inspirational new musical about the here and the now.
Alice in Funderland is a THISISPOPBABY commission.
Originally created by Phillip McMahon and Jennifer Jennings, and developed with Raymond Scannell, Wayne Jordan and the company.
The development was supported by The Arts Council, the Abbey Theatre, Dublin City Council and Project Arts Centre.
What the press say...
ITS BEEN OVER twenty years since the Abbey has produced a musical, but next year, one of the most ambitious and invigorating musical projects around will break that dry spell.
Alice In Funderland , by thisispopbaby, has just been announced for the Abbey in 2012. It’s among forthcoming highlights, which include a new play by Marina Carr – based on the life and death of Chekhov, 16 Possible Glimpses will run during this year’s Ulster Bank Dublin Theatre Festival.
Thisispopbaby, meanwhile, is a force of nature run by Philip McMahon and Jennifer Jennings, combining playwriting, performance, production, festivals and a tent at Electric Picnic to great effect. Their relationship with the Abbey has strengthened in the past few years and McMahon was a writer in association with the Abbey for 2009/10.
In 2006, McMahon’s Danny and Chantelle (Still Here) won the Spirit of the Fringe award at the Dublin Fringe festival. Love 2.0 was commissioned by the Abbey as part of the Dublin Fringe Festival in 2008 and involved two short plays: Two Houses by Belinda McKeon and Investment Potential by McMahon. Last year, thisispopbaby were back in the Abbey for five instalments of a late-night performance art nightclubbing experience called Werk, a dramatic departure for the theatre, but one that sold out five times in a row.
Alice In Funderland is a different beast to thisispopbabys already innovative portfolio. Presented in a work-in-progress style at the Project Arts Centre earlier this year, it tells the story of a young woman making her way home on a night out in Dublin, encountering various characters inspired by Alice In Wonderland .
Directed by Wayne Jordan (as is Carr’s play) and with music by Raymond Scannell, it was immediately lauded as one of the most promising productions in recent years, even though the performances were effectively just read-throughs.
