I count myself lucky to have been not only in the cast of Alice, but as part of the creative team. Jobsite Theater decided to take a work in the public domain and turn it into their own, inspired by the success of the 2021 gothic-cabaret production of Shockheaded Peter, which I also had the fortune of being a part of. The artistic associates looped me into the songwriting process, for which I contributed “Turtle Soup” and “Alice’s Interrogation,” which I also got to sing as the White Queen. Resident composer and musical director Jeremy Douglass took my ideas and made them magical. Katrina and I took on various elements of choreography – she choreographed our lyra sections (and convinced me I could, in fact, perform them, though I still would not consider myself to be a “lyra person”) and some dance bits including the Lobster Quadrille – and I would say that my favorite choreographic contribution would be the tea party cup dance that went along with the Irish-drinking-style tea party song written by Colleen Cherry titled “We’re All A Little Mad.”

Performing the show was nothing less than an exercise of endurance. Even when I was offstage, I was in motion – animating puppets, changing costumes, putting my microphone on, taking it off, more costume changes, managing props, short aerial acts, singing, lobster costumes… What a magical time this was, and what a magical cast.

Photos by Stage Photography of Tampa