Wildhorn's WONDERLAND Cast Announced!: Dacal, Ritchie & Shindle Lead

[philly03]

Posted: 10/12/10 at 1:05pm

"The cast of WONDERLAND - A New Alice. A New Musical will star Janet Dacal (In The Heights), Darren Ritchie (Little Shop of Horrors, Thoroughly Modern Millie), Titus Burgess (Jersey Boys, Little Mermaid), Jose Llana (Spelling Bee, Flower Drum Song), Karen Mason (Hairspray, Mamma Mia!), Kate Shindle (Legally Blonde, Cabaret, Jekyll and Hyde)and Edward Staudenmayer (Spamalot, Martin Short: Fame Becomes Me).

Directed by Gregory Boyd, with a book by Gregory Boyd and Jack Murphy, lyrics by Jack Murphy, music by Frank Wildhorn and choreography by Marguerite Derricks, WONDERLAND will open at Broadway’s Marquis Theatre on Sunday, April 17, 2011, and performances will begin Monday, March 21.

The ensemble includes April Berry, Sae La Chin, Dan Domenech, Mallauri Esquibel, Derek Ferguson, Lauren Lim Jackson, Morgan James, Stefan Raulston, Julius Anthony Rubio and Danny Stiles."







WONDERLAND on Broadway Updated On: 10/12/10 at 01:05 PM

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 10/12/10 at 1:28pm

Wow, a real all-star cast! Exciting!!

[ljay889]

Posted: 10/12/10 at 1:30pm

HEHE!

[perfectlymarvelous]

Posted: 10/12/10 at 1:36pm

Tituss Burgess and Kate Shindle? Damn, now I might actually have to see this.

[wildhornfan]

Posted: 10/12/10 at 1:39pm

And so it begins.. The MAN is back where he belongs!

[philly03]

Posted: 10/12/10 at 1:43pm

Touche, touche, but Wildhorn never goes for names... just talent (Do you really think Melissa Errico's star billing in DRACULA, the musical sold any tickets?). I think Ritchie will turn a few heads, he's very good in his performance (Not that I think it's Tony Award-winning or anything), and Kate Shindle will be a great Hatter.

I'm surprised Burgess agreed to do this - he has one song, and then two or three other songs where he sings a verse or two, usually with the Cheshire Cat! Perhaps it is more rewritten for him as well.
Updated On: 10/12/10 at 01:43 PM

[Anakela]

Posted: 10/12/10 at 1:48pm

Interesting that there's no announced Chloe or Jabberwock.

Glad to see Mallauri Esquibel still in the ensemble- hoping that means "I am My Own Invention" stays. :)

[Kad]

Posted: 10/12/10 at 2:39pm

"I'm surprised Burgess agreed to do this - he has one song, and then two or three other songs where he sings a verse or two, usually with the Cheshire Cat!"

He's not exactly a huge Broadway name yet- Nicely Nicely Johnson is hardly star billing (despite having a showstopping number).

[newintown]

Posted: 10/12/10 at 2:58pm

Too true - to think that Burgess has acquired vast holdings of wealth, or has multiple starring film, tv, and stage offers from which to choose is just ridiculous. He's a working actor who needs to take any good contract that comes his way.

[pinkyboy]

Posted: 10/12/10 at 3:00pm

The cast look ok, but has anyone seen this? I watched some clips on YouTube and it looks a mess, what was it like in the workshop performances?

[best12bars]

Posted: 10/12/10 at 3:11pm

Interesting that the Mad Hatter is being played by a woman.

Okay, maybe not that interesting ...

[Yankeefan007]

Posted: 10/12/10 at 3:13pm

He also sucked all the funny out of Nicely.

[Pianolin717]

Posted: 10/12/10 at 3:20pm

Pretty darn excited now that Shindle has been confirmed!

[Anakela]

Posted: 10/12/10 at 3:23pm

The cast look ok, but has anyone seen this? I watched some clips on YouTube and it looks a mess, what was it like in the workshop performances?

What clips were you watching? There was a segment with some TBPAC b-roll that was kind of awful camerawork (sorry, but it was), then there was I think some Alley Theatre b-roll footage that was a little better. But yes, live it looked much better than either of those videos.

[philly03]

Posted: 10/12/10 at 3:55pm

"Interesting that the Mad Hatter is being played by a woman.

Okay, maybe not that interesting ..."

The role was played by Nikki Snelson in the World Premiere. She was fantastic - Snelson's Hatter was sarcastic & funny, and very big dancing role. However, they apparently changed it (obviously), I would imagine the bulk of the dancing would be cut (for the Hatter herself anyway). I would also like to think the Hatter will, well, wear a Hat more than once in a while in this upcoming version.

"The cast look ok, but has anyone seen this? I watched some clips on YouTube and it looks a mess, what was it like in the workshop performances?"

I've seen it twice - The videos don't do justice to it.

They released horribly edited footage of REHEARSALS/dress rehearsal as a teaser from TBPAC and as quickly as it went up, it was taken down (Whoops - it's still on BWW though!).

Here's the Alley Theatre's legitimate pro-shot footage:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y72W--IAESU


I think it's one of those shows you have to experience. The jokes don't appear too funny on recording or on paper, but they are funny. The boy band scenes (including "One Knight" which is in the above clip) received tremendous applause and laughter each time. The bulk of the costumes are marvelous, most especially Karen Mason's Queen of Heart's card dress.

They've made some changes - there's already plenty of songs not on the concept album that are in the show (and remember - it's a POP Concept album, it doesn't reflect necessarily all the orchestrations in the show), and some have been cut, re-arranged, or added.

European theatrical superstar Thomas Borchert (Wildhorn's Count of Monte Cristo, DRACULA, the musical) just released the new song "Together," the second boy band song on his new CD. (It's a little different in the show, since he doesn't have the back up boy band)

They also are planning to get rid of some of the sometimes distracting video projections last I heard and focus a bit more on the set.

The reading before they announced for Broadway, several new producers fell in love with it immediately and put up funds to bring it to Broadway this season. As previously thought, Bonnie & Clyde had announced it was Broadway-bound. DOn't know the status on that though anymore!

[newintown]

Posted: 10/12/10 at 4:39pm

Sorry, but since the question was asked, I can add that I saw it in Tampa, and nothing (short of being paid $500) would induce me to watch even one act of it again. I found it to be one of the five most witless, stupid, boring, pointless, idiotic, badly-written, badly-directed musicals I've ever seen. There wasn't one thing I liked - even Karen Mason and José Llana, who I always enjoy, couldn't lift my spirits; I was just sad that they have to accept jobs this terrible to make a living.

That said, I make it clear that I don't put the blame on Wildhorn, who writes blandly acceptable music, but rather the book and lyric writers, whom I would guess to be chronic users of mind-numbing narcotics.

[CATSNYrevival]

Posted: 10/12/10 at 5:36pm

I'm excited to see what happens. I'm not looking forward to all the bashing the show will inevitably receive from posters who probably won't even go to see the show, but we'll see how it goes, I guess.

[romgitsean]

Posted: 10/12/10 at 6:01pm

If that clip doesn't scream horrific score and "We're doing this for the sake of commercialism! It has no plot or substance, but hey! Come pay an unnecessary amount for a butchered American performance of Lewis Caroll's work!", I don't know what does.

[CATSNYrevival]

Posted: 10/12/10 at 6:23pm

You don't know what does? How about Mamma Mia, Jersey Boys, Million Dollar Quartet, Addams Family, American Idiot or Wicked?

[legally_popular]

Posted: 10/12/10 at 6:38pm

I'm kinda excited for this, especially to see Janet Dacal on stage again in a starring role.

So Kate Shindle is playing the Mad Hatter now? Awesome!

Where does it say who's playing what character?

[philly03]

Posted: 10/12/10 at 7:04pm

First off, the semi-new website is up. It's different when you first get there. Broadway site s a little different.

Alice - Janet Dacal
Jack/White Knight/Lewis Carroll - Darren Ritchie
The Mad Hatter - Kate Shindle

Caterpillar - Titus Burgess
El Gato (Cheshire Cat) - Jose Llana
White Rabbit - EDWARD STAUDENMAYER
and
Karen Mason as the Queen of Hearts


I assume that Malluari Esquibel will once again been the Ballerina if the scenes still exist.

The role of Chloe, Alice's Daughter has not been cast yet. (It appears the Jaberwocky hasn't either)

[songanddanceman2]

Posted: 10/12/10 at 8:45pm

I really like Titus Burgess but that poor guy does not half end up in some rubbish

[pinkyboy]

Posted: 10/13/10 at 1:29am

@Philly, that was the clip I watched, the songs just sound to dated and cheesy IMO. Costumes look good though

[philly03]

Posted: 10/13/10 at 1:47am

Some comments then on those "dated" songs:
"Off With Their Heads" (the first song) was written specifically for Mason. When she joined the project, Wildhorn dropped his old tune and came up with the new one currently in the show. It's also got a much bigger ending to it in the show. It is a little cheezy - Not one of my favourites of the score.

"Nick of Time" must have been re-written or cut for Shindle... It's very dance-y (obviously); "One Knight" is supposed to look 'dated' because it is in the style of one of those boy band numbers from the '90s. It's kind of awkward to look at here, but it's actually very funny staging when taken in context.

I won't post the link to the other video that's on BWW. It's bad... just bad, though does show off some more of the choreography (With "Don't Wanna Fall in Love," "Home," "Misunderstood" and "Finding Wonderland" in those clips as opposed to "One Knight" & "Off With Their Heads").

[bwayphreak234]

Posted: 10/13/10 at 1:51am

I don't know much about this show, but I did read a detailed plot summary online. The show just makes no sense. I just don't get it. Having nit seen the show I can't say anything about the actual production, but the storyline is just a trainwreck.