Genre:

Ballet

Release Date:

Sep 2018

Sound Format:

LPCM 2.0, DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio

Catalog Number:

OA1269D

Talbot: Alice's Adventures in Wonderland (The Royal Ballet)

Lauren Cuthbertson (Alice); Federico Bonelli (Jack/The Knave of Hearts); James Hay (Lewis Carroll/The White Rabbit); Laura Morera (Mother/The Queen of Hearts); Christopher Saunders (Father/The King of Hearts); Steven McRae (Magician/The Mad Hatter); Fernando Montano (Rajah/The Caterpillar); Gary Avis (The Duchess); Paul Kay (Vicar/The March Hare); Romany Pajdak (Verger/The Dormouse); Kristen McNally (The Cook); Tristan Dyer (Footman/Fish);

​Royal Ballet Artistic Associate Christopher Wheeldon magically captured the twists and turns of Lewis Carroll's classic story, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, in his 2011 ballet. Bob Crowley's vivid sets and costumes take us down the rabbit hole into a colourful world of curious creatures and captivating characters. Joby Talbot's original score is full of sweeping melodies and contemporary sounds. Lauren Cuthbertson stars as the inquisitive Alice, with Federico Bonelli as the charming Knave of Hearts, Steven McRae as the tap-dancing Mad Hatter and Laura Morera as the formidable Queen of Hearts. This exuberant and engaging ballet is spectacular entertainment for the whole family.

Filmed in High Definition and recorded in true Surround Sound.


The Royal Ballet

Director - Kevin O'Hare

Orchestra of the Royal Opera House

Conductor - Koen Kessels

Directed for the Screen by Ross MacGibbon

Reviews

"The Royal Ballet's new season gets off to a phantasmagorical start - The Royal Ballet could hardly have chosen a more eye-popping or enjoyable production with which to launch its autumn season. And this is all the more gratifying given that the ballet in question is only six years old – a mere five in its current, three-act reincarnation. Cinematic but also unmistakably balletic, Joby Talbot’s complex, theme-driven score – coruscatingly orchestrated with the help of Christopher Austin – is full of magical surprises. Expertly aided and abetted by lighting guru Natasha Katz, designer Bob Crowley has had an absolute field day too, exploiting every means at his disposal – from puppetry to projection – to send us down the rabbit-hole with the heroine. Wheeldon, meanwhile, absolutely matches his collaborator’s contributions. This is a ballet that eloquently and respectfully reflects his Royal Ballet heritage (from its three-act structure, reliance on mime, and alternation of grand waltzes and intimate pas de deux, to its very Ashtonian reliance on largely cross-dressing comedy) while nevertheless feeling entirely 21st-century and absolutely its own thing. Together with dramaturge Nicholas Wright, he brings Alice even more to the fore than she is in the book, getting her involved in the action wherever possible, and delving deep into his choreographic box of tricks to bring each of the characters she encounters distinctively alive. Laura Morera (standing in for a sadly injured Zenaida Yanowksy) absolutely nails her twin roles as Alice’s mother and (supremely) the Queen of Hearts. Also deserving of plaudits are Fernando Montaño’s impossibly slinky Caterpillar, David Yudes’s spring-loaded Frog, and Gary Avis’s operatically OTT Duchess. But top marks go, above all, to Lauren Cuthbertson. As Alice, she avoids all the possible pitfalls of an adult playing a child, bringing pathos, wide-eyed innocence and matter-of-fact resourcefulness to the character, and never forgetting, amid all the elaborate stagecraft, to dance with great delicacy and impeccably classical precision. Wheeldon created the role on her, and it still feels like the part she was born to play." (The Daily Telegraph ★★★★)

"Alice is at it again. Christopher Wheeldon’s 2011 three-act ballet began another sell-out run at Covent Garden last week. It’s a joy to look at and packed with featured roles that show off the Royal Ballet’s strength in depth. " (The Observer)