The Ritz Civic Center in Blytheville will be filled with shrieks of delight on Friday, April 21st at 6:30 PM when The Arts Council of Mississippi County presents Bits ‘N Pieces Puppet Theatre with their giant puppet musical version of Alice In Wonderland.
This is a mammoth musical featuring nine-foot-tall puppets and a live actress. The lead character is played by actress and puppet builder Holli Rubin. Puppeteer and lyricist Jerry Bickel performs as the giant puppet. The production also includes shadow puppets, marionettes and hand puppets.
The story begins like this: When Alice escapes her boredom of this world to venture into a dream of another world, madcap high jinks and outlandish adventures are the order of the day. Lavishly costumed characters and giant puppets whirl, dance and sing on their journey through Lewis Carroll’s land of fantasy. The heroine learns it takes self-reliance and quick thinking to tame the comic nonsense of the Queen of Hearts, the Cheshire Cat, and Wonderland’s other unpredictable residents.
Bits ‘N Pieces Theatre has been creating original musical productions adapted from classic children’s literature for 38 years. Headquartered in Tampa, Florida, the company spends most of the year on national and international tour. This season’s touring production has thrilled audiences across the United States and around the world. This is the ninth year they have brought their magic to The Ritz with rave reviews every year. Previous stories have included Pinky Flamingo based on The Ugly Duckling, The Tale of Peter Rabbit, Jack and the Beanstalk, Aesop’s Fable, Three Billy Goats Gruff, Rip Van Winkle and Princess Thimbelina.
Alice In Wonderland is the final event of the 2016-2017 Series presented by The Arts Council of Mississippi County. This fun for all ages live show will be performed at The Ritz Theater at 306 W. Main Street in Blytheville.
The program will also be presented for five school day performances free for scheduled Mississippi County area school students in K-2nd Grade at no cost to the students or schools. The school day performances are made available in part by grants from the Mississippi County Community Foundation and Kinder Morgan Foundation as well as the support of Arts Council Patrons and Sponsors.
For the Friday 6:30 PM performance, adult tickets are only $10.00 in advance and $15.00 at the door, and children twelve and under are admitted free with an adult. Clearly this is a great family entertainment value. For more information, call (870) 762-1744, or visit the website www.artsmissco.org.