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This play “Alice’s Magical Journey In Wonderland” is based on the beloved story Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll. It tells the magical tale of Alicia, a curious girl who follows a talking White Rabbit down a mysterious hole and finds herself in a strange and whimsical world. Along the way, she meets unforgettable characters like the Cheshire Cat, the Mad Hatter, the Queen of Hearts, and many more. Through fun, laughter, and a little bit of chaos, Alicia learns that imagination is one of the most powerful gifts we have.
CHARACTERS:
NARRATOR
ALICE
WHITE RABBIT
MOUSE
PARROT
DUCK
EAGLE
PAT – THE LIZARD
ANIMAL 1 / ANIMAL 2: (Various creatures from the pool can be played by ensemble)
CATERPILLAR
CHESHIRE CAT
MARCH HARE
DORMOUSE
TWO (of Spades): (Grumbling gardener)
FIVE (of Spades): (Clumsy gardener)
SEVEN (of Spades): (Slightly paranoid gardener)
QUEEN OF HEARTS
KING OF HEARTS
CROWD – CARDS: (Ensemble, can represent soldiers, courtiers, etc.)
ALICE’S SISTER: (Calm, practical)
SCRIPT:
SCENE 1: THE RIVERBANK
NARRATOR: It was a sweltering day in the forest, and Alice, a bright-eyed, imaginative girl, was growing restless, slumped beside her sister, who was utterly absorbed in a book beneath a sprawling oak.
ALICE: (Sighs dramatically, rolling her eyes, perhaps poking at her sister’s book) Honestly, how can my sister read a book without a single picture? It’s simply boring! Oh, if only it weren’t so dreadfully hot, I’d be making a magnificent daisy chain! Such a waste of a perfectly good afternoon.
NARRATOR: Just then, a blur of white fur and frantic movement. A White Rabbit with startling pink eyes darted past her, muttering to himself in a voice squeaky with urgency.
WHITE RABBIT: (Skids to a halt, nearly tripping over his own feet. He pulls out a ridiculously large, ornate pocket watch, squinting at it through tiny spectacles perched precariously on his nose. He wrings his paws.) Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear! Time is slipping through my paws! I shall be dreadfully, frightfully, inexcusably LATE! The Duchess will have my ears for slippers! Oh, my fur and whiskers! (He checks his watch again, then bolts, a flurry of white, towards an unseen opening.)
ALICE: (Jumping to her feet) A rabbit! With a waistcoat! And a watch! This is much more interesting than a daisy chain! I simply must follow him! This is the most curious thing that has happened all day!
NARRATOR: Alice, no longer feeling the heat, dashed across the field after the frantic rabbit. Just as she thought she might catch him, the little creature vanished down a large, impossibly deep rabbit hole under a thick hedge, his voice echoing up.
WHITE RABBIT: (Voice fading, panicked) I cannot be LATE! Farewell, punctuality!
ALICE: (Dives in with youthful abandon) Well, if a rabbit can do it, so can I! Into the unknown!
SCENE 2: THE RABBIT HOLE / THE HALL OF DOORS
NARRATOR: Alice, driven by an unshakeable curiosity, plunged in after him. The rabbit-hole plummeted straight down like a tunnel, then dipped suddenly into an endless, dark shaft.
ALICE: Good heavens! I’m falling down a very deep well… but so slowly, it’s like floating! How peculiar! The sides are crammed with cupboards and bookshelves! And pictures! And maps! (She catches an imaginary object in the air.) Oh! A jar of strawberry jam! Mmm! (She “looks” inside, then sighs.) Empty! (She carefully places it on an imaginary shelf with exaggerated precision.) Can’t go hurting anyone with a falling jam jar, can I? Goodness, I hope this well comes to an end soon! I must have fallen miles and miles by now! Perhaps I’ll fall right through the Earth and come out the other side! How exciting!
NARRATOR: Suddenly, the little girl landed, with surprising gentleness, on a pile of dry leaves, completely unharmed. Alice stood up, shaking off the last of her descent. Before her stretched another long, dimly lit passage, and there, in the distance, was the White Rabbit, still running.
WHITE RABBIT: (Voice distant, getting closer as he rushes past) Oh my ears and whiskers, now I am truly, monumentally late! The Duchess will absolutely fume!
NARRATOR: Once again, Alice gave chase, but just as she was about to catch him, the Rabbit turned a sharp corner and disappeared. Alice found herself in a great, low room, surprisingly well-lit, and surrounded by doors of every conceivable size and shape.
ALICE: (Trying various doors) All the doors are locked! Every single one! How am I going to get out of here? Oh, I wish I had brought my little cat, Dinah. She would keep me company in this peculiar place. (She spots something new.) Over there! In the middle of the room, a glass table! But where did it come from? It certainly wasn’t here a moment ago! (She approaches it.) And on it, a tiny golden key! (Picks it up, examines it.) Hmm, it’s far too small. It doesn’t open any of these grand, imposing doors.
NARRATOR: However, on her second careful inspection of the room, Alice spotted, almost hidden behind a curtain, a very tiny door. She tried the little golden key in the lock, and to her great delight, the door opened with a soft click. The door led into a small, narrow passage. She knelt and peered through the opening, gasping at the sight. Beyond, she saw the loveliest garden she had ever seen.
ALICE: Oh, I simply must go to that garden! It’s utterly divine! But how could I possibly? I’ll never fit through this little door! Oh, if only I could shut up like a telescope, then I could surely skip into that beautiful garden. (She stands, paces back to the table.) I’ll check the table again for another key. No, no other key. But… what is this little bottle? (Picks up a small bottle.) It wasn’t here before! The label says, quite clearly, “DRINK ME.” (She turns it over, squints.) Hmm, nothing indicating poison. Good. I’ll taste it. Mmmm, delicious! It tastes of cherry tart, custard, pineapple, and roast turkey! I’ll drink the whole bottle! Oh! I feel strange! I’m getting smaller! Just like a telescope, exactly as I wished!
NARRATOR: She was now only ten inches high. Then she scurried to the little door, hoping to finally get out to the enchanting garden. But, poor Alice, the door was locked again, and she had forgotten the tiny key on a table leg. She tried to get it by climbing up one of the legs of the glass table, but it was far too slippery. Defeated, she sat down on the floor and began to cry.
ALICE: Oh, I’m behaving like a complete fool! There’s no use in crying! (She spies something under the table) But… under the table… there’s a little box!
NARRATOR: Alice opened the little box, her curiosity overcoming her despair. Inside, a small cake lay waiting.
ALICE: (Picks up the cake, reads the icing) It has “EAT ME” written on it! Well, I’ll eat it. (Takes a small bite.) Something marvelous has to happen! I’ve learned that in this peculiar place, everything is quite marvelous.
NARRATOR: She ate a little bite, but noticed no immediate difference, so she kept eating, determined, until she finished the whole cake. Then…
ALICE: I’m getting bigger! Good-bye, dear feet! You are almost out of sight, so far off! When I want to change my shoes, I will have to send them with a messenger with a note that says: “These shoes are a gift from Alice to her own feet.” Oh, what nonsense I’m thinking! What’s worse, I keep growing! Oh! (Her head hits the ceiling with a resounding THUD!) I hurt my head with the roof! I am more than nine feet high! I am a very, very big girl! But now…I can take the key!
NARRATOR: Poor big girl. But the only thing she could do was to lie down on the floor, rather uncomfortably, and look through the small door into the garden with one eye. Then, despite her resolution, she began to cry again, great, sorrowful sobs.
ALICE: I should be ashamed of myself! It’s not right that a great girl like me, a colossal girl, cries like a tiny baby!
NARRATOR: But she kept crying and crying, until there was a vast, shimmering pool of tears all around her. Then she heard some frantic footsteps splashing through the water, and at last she stopped crying, wiping her eyes. There it was: the White Rabbit, splendidly dressed, with a pair of white kid gloves in one hand, and a fan in the other. He looked even more stressed than before.
WHITE RABBIT: (Splashing through the pool) Oh, by this time the Duchess must be positively savage! I can’t keep her waiting another second! My very fur depends on it!
ALICE: Mr. Rabbit! Mr. Rabbit! Wait please! Just a moment! Listen to me!
NARRATOR: When the Rabbit heard Alice’s voice, it got scared and dropped the white gloves and the fan, bolting away as fast as it could, disappearing into the passage. Alice picked up the discarded gloves and the fan, and since it was still hot despite the tear-pool, she fanned herself, sighing.
ALICE: (Fanning herself) What a day! Yesterday, everything was so perfectly normal. Oh! I am getting smaller again! I wonder why! Maybe it’s the fan!
NARRATOR: She dropped the fan just as she was about to disappear, shrinking so fast she was almost gone entirely.
ALICE: Now I can go to the garden! But what’s this? I have fallen into salt water!
NARRATOR: The salt water, ironically, was her own vast pool of tears she had wept when she was nine feet high.
ALICE: I wish I hadn’t cried so much! It’s quite inconvenient!
SCENE 3: THE CAUCUS RACE
NARRATOR: She started to swim when she heard something else splashing in the pool, drawing closer.
ALICE: Someone else is swimming! Oh, it’s a hippopotamus! No, it’s a walrus! Oh, it’s a Mouse! But since I am small, I see it as huge! I will talk to the mouse, maybe it can answer me!
NARRATOR: So, she paddled closer and asked, cautiously.
ALICE: Tell me, Mouse, do you happen to know the way out of this… rather damp… pool?
NARRATOR: The Mouse looked at her with small, beady eyes, but it didn’t answer. Alice thought that maybe the Mouse didn’t understand English, so she said the only thing she could remember in French, trying to be polite.
ALICE: (Proudly) Où est ma chatte?
NARRATOR: Which, of course, means “Where is my cat?” Suddenly, the Mouse, with a furious squeak, scrambled out of the water and onto a nearby bank.
ALICE: Oh, please forgive me! I forgot mice don’t like cats! How dreadfully rude of me!
MOUSE: Look here, little girl! I have my own perfectly valid reasons to dislike cats, thank you very much! Someday I will tell you my story, and then you will perfectly understand how I feel! But for now, let’s swim to the shore. Look! (Points with a tiny paw.) We have company! The pool is quite full of creatures!
ALICE: (Turns, surprised) It’s true! It’s a Parrot, a Duck, an Eagle, and many more! Hello, everyone!
NARRATOR: Alice swam near the little animals, who were all shivering and bedraggled. After a while, they all managed to scramble onto the shore, dripping wet.
ALICE: (Shivering) We are all dreadfully wet!
MOUSE: (Shivering, his whiskers twitching) I quite agree with you! What do you propose, Parrot?
PARROT: (Fluffs his damp feathers importantly) I propose a Caucus-Race! It’s the only sensible thing to do.
ALICE: A Caucus-Race? What’s that?
PARROT: You don’t know? Good heavens! Look, it’s a sort of circle, but the shape doesn’t really matter, you see. When I say “Ready!”, everybody will stand. When I say “Go!”, everybody will start running! And you run, and you run, and you run until you are dry! Ready! Go!
(The animals and Alice start running in different directions, bumping into each other, some falling, some just standing bewildered. Alice tries her best to follow the “rules.”)
NARRATOR: Everybody started running in their own peculiar ways, and half an hour later, the Parrot, looking slightly less damp, declared.
PARROT: Everybody is dry! The race is over!
MOUSE: But… who won?
PARROT: (Spreading his wings) Everybody has won! And all of you have to receive a prize! That’s the beauty of a Caucus-Race!
DUCK: Who will give the prizes?!
EAGLE: Yes, who will undertake such a task?!
PARROT: (Points a wing at Alice) The little girl, obviously! She’s the biggest.
NARRATOR: Alice didn’t know what to do. She put her hand in her pocket and, to her surprise, pulled out a box of candied peel. She handed them round as prizes. There was exactly one piece each, all round.
MOUSE: (Looks at his tiny piece of candy) What about her? Isn’t she going to receive a prize?
PARROT: Of course she is! Let’s see, Alice, what else do you have in your other pocket?
ALICE: (Reaches into her other pocket, pulls out a tiny, silver thimble) Let me see. Only a thimble.
PARROT: (Takes the thimble with a flourish) Give it to me. (He bows slightly to Alice, presenting the thimble.) Please accept this elegant thimble as a magnificent prize for your participation!
NARRATOR: They all cheered. Alice thought that everything was so strange, but when she saw their faces so gravely serious, she didn’t dare to laugh, so she just said.
ALICE: (Taking the thimble with a polite curtsy) It’s an honor for me to accept this beautiful prize. My thimble was just what I needed, truly. (She turns to the Mouse.) Dear Mouse, you promised to tell me your story. I would be most glad to hear it.
MOUSE: I must tell you that my story is very sad and long… as my tail.
ALICE: Your tail is long.
NARRATOR: The girl was looking at the Mouse’s tail, trying to understand how it could be “sad.” Alice, distracted, didn’t pay proper attention to the Mouse’s winding, tangled story, so when the Mouse finished talking, he said crossly.
MOUSE: (Stamps a tiny foot) Little girl! You are clearly not paying attention! What are you thinking of?! I have a knot in my throat!
ALICE: A knot! Oh, let me help you undo it! I always undo the ribbon my cat has around her neck. She gets all tangled.
MOUSE: Young lady, you insult me! You offend me! You mention that creature in my presence!
ALICE: You always get offended! It’s rather tiresome.
MOUSE: You need more education on proper etiquette! I am leaving! And I shall not return! (He scampers off.)
ALICE: (Shrugs, watching him go) He’s gone! Well, that’s that. Now can I talk with the Parrot and the other birds about Dinah, my cat? She’s truly remarkable.
PARROT: Who’s… Dinah?
ALICE: Dinah is my little cat! She’s awfully good at catching mice and birds! Oh, I wish you could see her after the birds! She eats them as soon as she looks at them! And as for mice, why, she catches them like… like lightning!
PARROT: (Exchanges horrified glances with the Duck and Eagle) Let’s go, friends! We simply cannot talk to this girl! That’s why the Mouse left, you see! Follow me! (He waddles off quickly, followed by the Duck and Eagle)
ALICE: Please, don’t leave me alone! (They vanish.) They are gone! Oh, I shouldn’t have talked about Dinah! In this strange country, nobody likes cats. (She sighs, looking around the empty shore. Then she brightens.) Someone is coming! Maybe it’s the Mouse who changed his mind, but no… It’s the White Rabbit!
SCENE 4: THE RABBIT’S HOUSE
WHITE RABBIT: (Rushing in, wild-eyed, disheveled) The Duchess! The Duchess! Oh my fur and whiskers! She’ll get me executed, as sure as two plus two are eight! Where did I leave the gloves?! And my fan!
NARRATOR: The Rabbit was looking frantically for the gloves and the fan, tearing at his waistcoat. Alice, wishing to help, began looking for them too, though everything had changed since she was swimming in the pool. Like magic, the large room had completely vanished. At last, the Rabbit noticed Alice, and, mistaking her for someone else, snapped.
WHITE RABBIT: (Points an accusatory paw at Alice) Mary Ann, what ARE you doing out here?! Stop dawdling! Run home this moment, and bring me another pair of gloves and a fan! Quick, now! Don’t just stand there gaping!
NARRATOR: Alice was so startled and flustered by his imperious tone that she ran off at once in the direction it pointed to, without even trying to explain the mistake he had made.
ALICE: (Muttering to herself as she runs) He took me for his housemaid! How absurd! But I suppose I’d better take him his fan and gloves, that is, if I can find them. This whole day is just one surprising event after another!
NARRATOR: As she said this, she came upon a very beautiful little house, on the door of which was a bright brass plate with the name “White R” engraved upon it.
ALICE: (Reading the plate aloud) “White R?” Maybe it means White Rabbit. I will go in. I hope I don’t find the real Mary Ann. Anyway, it’s rather funny! I am the messenger of a rabbit! Oh, how lucky I am! (She enters, looking around.) Over the table, there is a pair of gloves and a fan! (She picks them up.) And! A little bottle! (Picks it up.) I will drink it, and I hope I can grow large again. I am getting tired of being so small. This constant changing is quite exhausting.
NARRATOR: In fact, as soon as she drank the little bottle, she grew so fast that she had to take an arm out of the window, and a leg up the chimney. Fortunately, the little magic bottle had no further effect. Still, it was very uncomfortable, and, since there was no chance of getting out of the room again, she started crying, quite miserably. After a while, she heard a voice outside, growing increasingly irate.
WHITE RABBIT: (From outside, pounding on the door) Mary Ann! Mary Ann! Answer me! Where are my pair of gloves?! Can’t you hear me?! What is going on?! The door isn’t opening! Mary Ann, tell me, why have you locked the door?! Answer me, you insolent girl! Very good, then! I’ll go in through the window!
NARRATOR: The Rabbit was just under the window when Alice, thinking quickly, opened her hand, and made a snatch in the air, trying to grab him. But she didn’t catch anything. Then there was a crash of broken glass, and the Rabbit shouted in pain and surprise.
WHITE RABBIT: (Screaming) OH! My head!
NARRATOR: Next, the Rabbit, with a voice full of furious indignation, shouted.
WHITE RABBIT: (Furious) Pat! Pat! Where are you, you slowpoke?! Pat! Pat! Come at once!
PAT – THE LIZARD: (From offstage, a timid, muffled voice) Here I am, your honor, digging for apples.
WHITE RABBIT: (Impatiently) Come here, you useless creature! And help me get out of here! Tell me what you see in the window, precisely!
PAT: (Enters, a small, nervous figure, looking up at the window with wide eyes) I see an arm, your honor. A very, very large arm.
WHITE RABBIT: (Exasperated) What do you mean, an arm?! Who has ever seen an arm that big?! Don’t be a dunderhead!
PAT: (Trembling slightly) Well, I insist, it’s an arm, your honor. It’s certainly not a branch.
WHITE RABBIT: (Slamming a foot) Then, why is an arm there?! Take it away, you imbecile! Dislodge it!
PAT: (Wringing his hands) I am… I am rather scared of the arm, your honor. It’s quite intimidating.
WHITE RABBIT: Don’t be a coward, you spineless reptile! Then go down through the chimney! I order you to do it! Now!
PAT: Very well, your honor. I will go down the chimney. (He moves towards the chimney, nervously.)
ALICE: (Inside the house) Oh, I will kick him! This might be fun.
NARRATOR: Alice kicked Pat so hard that he flew through the air like a sky-rocket. Then she heard excited, chattering animal voices from outside.
ANIMAL 1 & 2: (Shouting) Look! Look! It’s Pat!
WHITE RABBIT: (Rushing to Pat) Hold up his head! Don’t just stand there!
ANIMAL 1: Don’t choke him, for goodness sake!
ANIMAL 2: (To Pat) How was it?! What happened?!
WHITE RABBIT: What happened to you?! Tell us all about it, immediately!
PAT: (Rubbing his head) I don’t know… one moment I was sliding down, the next I was suddenly thrown through the air like a sky-rocket! It was… quite disorienting!
WHITE RABBIT: (Nods grimly) We could certainly see that! And since there’s nothing else we can do, and this monstrous limb won’t budge… we must burn the house down! It’s the only logical course of action!
NARRATOR: Alice could not see what was happening outside, but she could clearly hear them, so she shouted down, her voice echoing.
ALICE: Wait! And you, Mr. Rabbit! If you burn the house, I’ll set my cat Dinah at you! I am warning you, she likes to eat rabbits! She finds them quite delicious!
NARRATOR: There was silence instantly. Alice waited for an answer. At last, she felt a shower of little pebbles coming from the window, and some of them hit her in the face with small plinks. Alice noticed, with dawning fascination, that the pebbles were all turning into little cakes as they lay on the floor, and a bright idea came into her head.
ALICE: (Picks up a cake, examines it) I’ll eat one of these cakes, and I hope I will not grow bigger. I’d quite like to be small for a change!
NARRATOR: She ate a cake, and she began shrinking rapidly. As soon as she was small enough to get through the door, she ran out of the house and found a crowd of little animals around a dazed lizard, which was Pat, still rubbing his head in the middle of them. When they saw her, now small again, they gave a startled cry and chased her! But Alice ran off as hard as she could, and soon found herself safe, and thankfully alone, in a thick forest.
ALICE: Well, that was an adventure. Now I have to eat or drink something to grow to my right size again. I wonder what it will be this time. Will it be a mushroom? A plum? A pickle?
SCENE 5: THE CATERPILLAR
NARRATOR: Near her, a truly enormous mushroom stood tall. She stretched herself up on tiptoe, and peeped over the edge of the mushroom, and she saw a large, blue Caterpillar that was sitting on the top, lazily smoking a long hookah. The Caterpillar and Alice looked at each other for a long moment, in silence. At last, the Caterpillar took the hookah out of its mouth and talked to her in a languid, drawling voice.
CATERPILLAR: (Slow, deliberate, slightly bored tone, exhaling a plume of “smoke”) Who… are you?
ALICE: (A little exasperated) I suppose I don’t know. At least I know who I was when I got up this morning, but I think I must have been changed several times since then. It’s quite discombobulating.
CATERPILLAR: What do you mean by that? Explain… yourself!
ALICE: (I’m afraid I can’t explain myself. Because I’m not myself, you see! But when you have to turn into a chrysalis, and then after that into a butterfly, you will feel just like I do! It’s utterly confusing!
CATERPILLAR: (Puffs slowly) Chrysalis… butterfly…I don’t like the idea. Not one bit. Now tell me, who… are you?
ALICE: It’s better if I go, Mr. Caterpillar. Or we will start the conversation all over again, and I’m rather tired of it. Perhaps you should put the hookah into your mouth and start smoking again. See you! (She turns to leave.)
CATERPILLAR: Come back! I’ve something important to say!
NARRATOR: Alice turned and came back again, her curiosity piqued.
ALICE: What is it?
CATERPILLAR: Keep your temper.
ALICE: Is that all?
CATERPILLAR: Of course not. (Another slow puff.) So you think you have… changed?
ALICE: I don’t just think so, I know so! I don’t keep the same size for fifteen minutes together! It’s quite inconvenient for dressing, among other things.
CATERPILLAR: Are you content now?
ALICE: Impossible! I would like to be a little larger. I currently measure three inches in height. It’s absolutely ridiculous! I can barely see over this mushroom!
CATERPILLAR: It is a very good height! That’s precisely what I measure.
ALICE: Forgive me, Mr. Caterpillar, please don’t feel offended! But I am not used to being so small. It’s quite a novelty.
CATERPILLAR: (Takes a final, long drag from his hookah) You’ll get used to it. (He yawns several times, then slowly, majestically, gets down off the mushroom, and crawls away in the grass, his voice fading slightly as he goes.) One side will make you grow taller… and the other side will make you grow shorter.
ALICE: One side of what? The other side of what?!
CATERPILLAR: Of the mushroom, everybody knows that.
NARRATOR: As soon as the Caterpillar left, Alice, with a mischievous grin, stretched her arms and cut a piece of the mushroom from one side, and another piece from the other. Then she nibbled a little from both pieces, alternating, until she was of her normal size. Then she carefully put the remaining pieces in her pocket and kept walking through the forest. Suddenly, she saw a large black cat who was grinning from ear to ear. It was the Cheshire Cat.
SCENE 6: THE CHESHIRE CAT
ALICE: (Approaching cautiously, delighted) Oh, would you tell me, please, which way I have to go from here?
CHESHIRE CAT: Ha, ha, ha, ha! That depends entirely on where you want to get to.
ALICE: I don’t care that much, as long as I get somewhere.
CHESHIRE CAT: THEN it doesn’t matter which way you go! Ha, ha, ha!
ALICE: As long as I get somewhere. (She looks around.) What kind of people live here, in this part of the woods?
CHESHIRE CAT: To the north, lives a Hatter. And to the south, lives a March Hare. Visit the one you like, they’re both mad. Utterly, deliciously mad.
ALICE: But I don’t like mad people.
CHESHIRE CAT: We’re all mad here. I’m mad. You’re mad. Ha, ha, ha, ha!
ALICE: Why do you say that? How do you know I’m mad?
CHESHIRE CAT: Because you are here, aren’t you? Tell me, are you going to play croquet with the Queen today?
ALICE: I like croquet, but I haven’t been invited yet.
CHESHIRE CAT: Anyway, you’ll see me there. Ta-ta for now!
(The Cheshire Cat begins to vanish slowly)
CHESHIRE CAT: Ha, ha, ha, ha.
ALICE: This is truly funny! I’ve often seen a cat without a grin, but a grin without a cat! This place gets curiouser and curiouser. I’ll go visit the Hare. He sounds less… philosophical.
SCENE 7: THE MAD TEA PARTY
NARRATOR: She hadn’t gone much farther when she saw the house of the March Hare. The chimneys were comically shaped like ears, and the roof was made of shaggy fur. She walked toward the house, and, remembering her lesson, ate a small piece of the magical mushroom to ensure she was just the right size. There was a long table set out under a tree in front of the house, and the March Hare and the Hatter were having a very animated tea at it. A Dormouse was sitting between them, fast asleep, and the other two were using it as a cushion, occasionally poking it. The table was large, but the three were all crowded together at one corner of it. When Alice approached them, they shouted, rather rudely.
MARCH HARE & HATTER: No room for you! No room! No room at all!
ALICE: Of course there is! (She pulls up an empty armchair at the end of the long table with a flourish and sits down.) Plenty of room, thank you very much!
MARCH HARE: Then drink some wine!
ALICE: (Looks around the table) How can I drink wine if there’s only tea?
MARCH HARE: I knew there wasn’t any wine. It was a trick!
ALICE: Then why are you telling me to drink it?! That is not being polite at all! It’s quite misleading!
MARCH HARE: Well, it’s also not polite to sit down without being invited, is it, young lady?
ALICE: (Gestures to the vast table) I didn’t know it was your table! It’s set for more than four people, you see.
NARRATOR: Meanwhile, the Hatter was looking at Alice silently, with an intense, unblinking stare. Finally, he said, very slowly.
HATTER: You… should cut your hair. It’s far too long. Dreadfully long.
ALICE: I can see that they didn’t tell you not to make personal remarks! It’s incredibly rude!
HATTER: Tell me, why is a raven like a writing-desk?
ALICE: Oh, I like riddles! I think I can guess that!
MARCH HARE: Do you mean you know the answer?! Tell us! Tell us!
ALICE: Yes, I do.
MARCH HARE: Then tell me what you think! Say what you mean!
ALICE: I do, at least I mean what I say; it’s the same thing, isn’t it?
HATTER: (Slams his hand on the table, rattling teacups) It’s not the same thing at all! Is it the same thing to say “I see what I eat” as “I eat what I see”? Or “I like what I have” as “I have what I like”? Or “I breathe when I sleep” as “I sleep when I breathe”?! Nonsense!
NARRATOR: There was silence for a minute, while Alice thought over all she could remember about ravens and writing-desks. Then the Hatter said, pulling out a large, battered pocket watch and looking at it with great distress.
HATTER: What day is today?! This watch is wrong by two days! I told you, March Hare, that butter wouldn’t work! It jammed the cogs!
MARCH HARE: (Snatching the watch, dipping it vigorously into the teapot with a loud splash) It was the best butter! Everyone knows that! Let me see your watch. I’ll dip it into the tea, and I hope it works! (He shakes it, holding it to his ear.)
ALICE: What a funny watch! It tells the day of the month, but not the time!
HATTER: Does your watch tell you what year it is?!
ALICE: Of course not.
HATTER: Then I see nothing strange with mine, do you? (He peers at the Dormouse, who is slumped asleep.) The Dormouse is asleep again. I’ll pour a little hot tea in its nose. (He pours a small stream of tea on the Dormouse’s snout. The Dormouse twitches but doesn’t wake.) Now that I remember, do you have the answer to the riddle, young lady? The raven and the writing-desk?
ALICE: No, I give up. What’s the answer?
HATTER: We don’t have the slightest idea! Isn’t that right, March Hare?
MARCH HARE: That’s right! It’s a trick question! We are getting dreadfully bored. Tell us a story, young lady.
ALICE: Right now, I can’t remember any. My mind feels quite muddled.
MARCH HARE: Then the Dormouse will! Wake up, Dormouse! Story time!
ALICE: But the Dormouse is sleeping! You just poured tea on him!
DORMOUSE: (Suddenly sits bolt upright, eyes wide, speaks quickly, then slumps again) I’m not asleep! I heard every word you said! And I heard the Hatter pouring tea on my nose!
HATTER: (Ignoring Alice, poking the Dormouse again) Tell us something, then! Don’t be a spoilsport!
ALICE: Yes, please! A story would be lovely!
HATTER: Don’t talk, young lady! It’s quite rude!
NARRATOR: Alice was utterly aghast at his rudeness. With a huff, she stood up and walked off. Neither of the others tried to stop her, though she looked back once or twice, half hoping that they would call after her. The last time she saw them, they were trying to forcibly put the Dormouse into the teapot.
ALICE: I don’t want to see you again! You’re all dreadfully ill-mannered! (She walks through the forest. Then she spots something with delight.) Oh! In that tree! There’s a little door! I’ll go in! (She opens the door.) But what a beautiful garden! It’s the one I saw through the little door in that strange room! There are colorful flowers and cool fountains! It’s perfect!
SCENE 8: THE QUEEN’S GARDEN / CROQUET GROUND
NARRATOR: A large rose tree stood near the entrance of the garden. The roses growing on it were white, but there were three poker cards, who were gardeners, busily painting them red. Alice heard their grumbling conversation.
TWO (of Spades): (Splashing paint) Look out, Five! You’re splashing paint all over me! For goodness sake, try to be less clumsy!
FIVE (of Spades): (Wiping paint off his face with a painted hand) It wasn’t me! It was Seven! He pushed me with his elbow! He’s always causing trouble!
SEVEN (of Spades): (Indignant) You are always blaming me, Five! It’s utterly unfair!
FIVE (of Spades): Seven, be quiet! Yesterday, the Queen said you deserved to be beheaded for mixing up the tulips!
TWO (of Spades): Why?!
SEVEN (of Spades): (Turns sharply, spotting Alice, alarmed) That’s none of your business, Two! (He nudges Five and Two.) Look! A little girl! Don’t just stand there!
ALICE: (Approaching politely) Would you be so kind as to tell me why you are painting those beautiful roses?
TWO (of Spades): You see, Miss, we made a dreadful mistake. We planted a white rose tree, instead of a red one, just as the Queen commanded us to! So, we are doing our very best, with utmost haste, before she comes. If she finds out… well, it’s off with our heads, you see!
SEVEN (of Spades): Quiet! The Queen!
NARRATOR: The three gardeners instantly threw themselves to the floor, flat on their faces, like discarded playing cards. There was a sound of many footsteps, and Alice looked around, eager to finally see the notorious Queen. First came twenty soldiers, all shaped like the three gardeners – playing cards, armed with clubs. Next came the courtiers, looking rather stiff. After these came the royal children, ornamented with hearts, jumping merrily along hand in hand. Next came the guests, mostly Kings and Queens from other suits, and among them, looking utterly terrified, was the White Rabbit. Then followed the Knave of Hearts, carrying the King’s crown on a velvet cushion, and, last of all in this grand, imposing procession, came the King and Queen of Hearts. When the procession came opposite to Alice, they all stopped and looked at her, and the Queen, a formidable figure, boomed.
QUEEN OF HEARTS: (Loud, commanding voice) Who is she?! Nobody knows her! (She glares at the White Rabbit.) What’s your name, child?! Speak up!
ALICE: (Curtsying politely) My name is Alice, your Majesty.
NARRATOR: But she added, to herself, her courage growing.
ALICE: (Whispering to herself) I shouldn’t be afraid. They are only a pack of cards, after all!
QUEEN OF HEARTS: (Points a gloved finger at the prostrate gardeners) And who are these on the floor?! All my courtiers are the same on the opposite side! (She glares at Alice.) Answer me, Alice! Immediately!
ALICE: How should I know? It’s none of my business who they are.
QUEEN OF HEARTS: OFF WITH HER HEAD!
CROWD – CARDS: (Chanting in a robotic, unified voice) Yes! Off with her head!
KING OF HEARTS: (Nervously clearing his throat) One moment, my dear Queen! I, the King, has the right to speak, you know. Don’t you see, my dear, that she is only a child? Perhaps she knows how to play croquet? That might save her.
QUEEN OF HEARTS: If she knows how to play, I will forgive her. Alice, follow me! Stand beside the Rabbit! And don’t you dare dawdle!
ALICE: (To the White Rabbit) Hello, Mr. Rabbit! We finally meet again under… less frantic circumstances. Where’s the Duchess?
WHITE RABBIT: (Whispering) Quiet! Shhh! She will be executed! Any moment now!
ALICE: Why? What did she do?
WHITE RABBIT: (Whispering) She was late! The Queen was angry, and… and the Duchess… she slapped her! It was a terrible scene!
ALICE: Ha, ha, that’s rather funny!
WHITE RABBIT: The Queen will hear you! She has ears like a bat! (He nudges her forward.) We have arrived at the croquet-ground! Pay attention!
NARRATOR: The ground was truly strange. It was all ridges and furrows. The balls were live hedgehogs, curled into tight, spiky spheres, the mallets live flamingoes, struggling and squawking, and the soldiers had to double themselves up and to stand on their hands and feet, to make the arches. When the Queen shouted, people began running in all directions, tumbling up against each other in chaotic heaps. But when someone was about to beat the Queen, she would stop the game and shriek.
QUEEN OF HEARTS: (Pointing a finger, face contorted in fury) OFF WITH HIS HEAD!
NARRATOR: Alice played as best as she could, struggling with her flamingo mallet and the unruly hedgehog. But when, by sheer luck, she managed to beat the Queen, the monarch’s face turned a dangerous shade of purple, and she shrieked, pointing at Alice.
QUEEN OF HEARTS: Off with her head! Immediately!
ALICE: You can’t leave me without my head! I have the right to be judged! There must be a trial! It’s only fair!
QUEEN OF HEARTS: Very well! Let’s go to my palace! We shall have a trial! Such a bore!
SCENE 9: THE TRIAL
NARRATOR: That’s how Alice entered the palace, accused of the heinous crime of beating the Queen in a croquet game. There was a jury, seated at a long table. To Alice’s surprise, the Hatter and the March Hare were two of the Members of the Jury, looking thoroughly confused. Alice imagined herself without her head, a rather unpleasant thought, so she took from her pocket a discreet piece of the magical cake, ate it, and said to herself, with determination.
ALICE: (Whispering fiercely to herself, eating the cake) If I grow to my full size, I will be safe! It’s my only chance! Yes, I am growing! I’m getting bigger and bigger! Much too big for them to bother with!
QUEEN OF HEARTS: (Ignoring Alice’s growth, thumping her fist) I will say the sentence first, then the verdict! (She points at Alice.) OFF WITH HER HEAD!
ALICE: (Now towering over everyone, her voice powerful and confident) I don’t think you can make it, Queen of Hearts! You’re nothing but a card! And I am BIG! Very, very big!
QUEEN OF HEARTS: (Shrinking in perceived stature, her voice losing its power) I order you to be quiet! This is a court of law!
ALICE: I will not be quiet! All of you are only a pack of cards! You are just painted pasteboard! I am not afraid of you! Not one bit!
NARRATOR: Then all the cards stood up, angrily, their painted faces contorted with rage, and came flying down upon her in a furious, fluttering swarm. The little girl tried to beat them off, batting them away with her hands, but she couldn’t. She tried to stand up fully, struggling against the onslaught, but then… she found out she had her head in the lap of her sister, and that everything had been a truly wonderful, bewildering dream.
SCENE 10: THE RIVERBANK – RETURN
ALICE: (Stirring, blinking, then sitting up and looking at her sister, a wide, joyful smile spreading across her face) Dear sister, I had such a curious dream! Oh, you wouldn’t believe it! Someday, when you have nothing else to do, I will tell you all about it! Every single mad, marvelous detail!
NARRATOR: Suddenly, Alice saw a flicker of white darting past in the distance.
ALICE: (Eyes widening, springing to her feet, pointing excitedly) Look! Look, sister! A White Rabbit! With a waistcoat and a watch! I’ll follow him! Come! Come with me to Wonderland!
NARRATOR: And so, Alice awoke from her extraordinary dream, back in the quiet, familiar world beside her sister. But the whispers of Wonderland, the echoes of mad tea parties and booming queens, lingered in her mind. For though she returned to her size and her own time, the curious adventures had left their mark. Alice now knew that even in the most ordinary moments, a touch of the extraordinary, a whisper of wonder, and the possibility of grand adventure could always be found, if only one dared to look. And perhaps, just perhaps, the White Rabbit is still out there, running late for a very important date, waiting for another curious soul to tumble down the rabbit hole.
THE END
Author: Lewis Carroll
Adapted by: K I D S I N C O
Moral: This story encourages us to embrace curiosity and the boundless power of imagination, reminding us that even in the most illogical or challenging situations, adaptability and an open mind can lead to extraordinary discoveries about the world and ourselves. It’s a playful reminder that life doesn’t always adhere to strict logic, and finding wonder in the absurd can be its reward.
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External Sources for Alice in Wonderland:
Wikipedia – Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland
A well-rounded article that covers the plot, characters, interpretations, adaptations, and cultural references.
Alice in Wonderland – The Lewis Carroll Society
A site dedicated to Carroll’s work with articles, events, and resources for fans and researchers.
Project Gutenberg – Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland (Free eBook)
The complete text of the original book is available for free in multiple formats (ePub, Kindle, HTML, etc.).
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Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass byLewis Carroll. A classic children´s book. In the middle of the book was a letter written by Lewis Carroll in 1876 to the children who were reading his book. It comes at the end of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and it says:
An Easter Greeting
To Every Child Who Loves Alice
Dear Child,
Please to fancy, if you can, that you are reading a real letter, from a real friend whom you have seen, and whose voice you can seem to yourself to hear wishing you, as I do now with all my heart, a happy Easter.
Do you know that delicious dreamy feeling when one first wakes on a summer morning, with the twitter of birds in the air, and the fresh breeze coming in at the open window–when, lying lazily with eyes half shut, one sees as in a dream green boughs waving, or waters rippling in a golden light? It is a pleasure very near to sadness, bringing tears to one’s eyes like a beautiful picture or poem. And is not that a Mother’s gentle hand that undraws your curtains, and a Mother’s sweet voice that summons you to rise? To rise and forget, in the bright sunlight, the ugly dreams that frightened you so when all was dark–to rise and enjoy another happy day, first kneeling to thank that unseen Friend, who sends you the beautiful sun?
Are these strange words from a writer of such tales as “Alice”? And is this a strange letter to find in a book of nonsense? It may be so. Some perhaps may blame me for thus mixing together things grave and gay; others may smile and think it odd that any one should speak of solemn things at all, except in church and on a Sunday: but I think–nay, I am sure–that some children will read this gently and lovingly, and in the spirit in which I have written it.
For I do not believe God means us thus to divide life into two halves–to wear a grave face on Sunday, and to think it out-of-place to even so much as mention Him on a week-day. Do you think He cares to see only kneeling figures, and to hear only tones of prayer–and that He does not also love to see the lambs leaping in the sunlight, and to hear the merry voices of the children, as they roll among the hay? Surely their innocent laughter is as sweet in His ears as the grandest anthem that ever rolled up from the “dim religious light” of some solemn cathedral?
And if I have written anything to add to those stores of innocent and healthy amusement that are laid up in books for the children I love so well, it is surely something I may hope to look back upon without shame and sorrow (as how much of life must then be recalled!) when my turn comes to walk through the valley of shadows.
This Easter sun will rise on you, dear child, feeling your “life in every limb,” and eager to rush out into the fresh morning air–and many an Easter-day will come and go, before it finds you feeble and gray-headed, creeping wearily out to bask once more in the sunlight–but it is good, even now, to think sometimes of that great morning when the “Sun of Righteousness shall arise with healing in his wings.”
Surely your gladness need not be the less for the thought that you will one day see a brighter dawn than this–when lovelier sights will meet your eyes than any waving trees or rippling waters–when angel-hands shall undraw your curtains, and sweeter tones than ever loving Mother breathed shall wake you to a new and glorious day–and when all the sadness, and the sin, that darkened life on this little earth, shall be forgotten like the dreams of a night that is past!
Your affectionate friend,
LEWIS CARROLL
Easter, 1876
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