Alice in Wonderland (opera)

Opera by Unsuk Chin

Alice in Wonderland is a 2007 operatic adaptation of the novels Alice's Adventures in Wonderland (1865) and Through the Looking-Glass (1871) by Lewis Carroll.[1] It is the first opera of Korean composer Unsuk Chin, who co-wrote the English libretto with the Asian-American playwright David Henry Hwang.

It had its world premiere on 30 June 2007.[2] However, the jacket and notice of the DVD of the world premiere indicates that the recording was made on 27 June at the Bavarian State Opera as part of the 2007 Munich Opera Festival.[3] Conducted by Kent Nagano and featuring Sally Matthews in the title role and Dame Gwyneth Jones as the Queen of Hearts, the production was hailed as World Premiere of the Year by the German opera magazine Opernwelt.[4] A DVD was subsequently released by Euroarts.

The American Premier took place in 2012 at Opera Theatre of Saint Louis conducted by Michael Christie under the direction of James Robinson featuring Ashley Emerson, Tracy Dahl, Jenni Bank, David Trudgen, Aubrey Allicock, and Julie Makerov.

The most notable subsequent production was a co-production with the Los Angeles Philharmonic and The Barbican Center in London. The LA production was conceived by director Netia Jones and conducted in Los Angeles by Susanna Mälkki and in London by Baldur Brönnimann. The cast featured Rachele Gilmore, Andrew Watts, Marie Arnet, Jenni Bank, Jane Henschel, and Dietrich Henschel.

The Opera also exists in a condensed concert version which has been performed by the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic, The Bergen Philharmonic in Bergen and Oslo, and the Seoul Philharmonic. This version originated for Soprano and Alto but a Baritone was added for the Seoul version. The concert version has been performed by Sally Matthews(soprano), Rachele Gilmore(soprano), Jenni Bank(mezzo-soprano), and Dietrich Henschel(baritone).

## Roles

[edit]

Role  | Voice type | Premiere cast, June 2007
Conductor: Kent Nagano | American premiere cast, June 2012
Conductor: Michael Christie

|
|
|

Alice | soprano | Sally Matthews
Cheshire Cat | soprano | Piia Komsi/Julia Rempe
Mad Hatter/Duck | baritone | Dietrich Henschel
White Rabbit/Badger/March Hare | countertenor | Andrew Watts
Mouse/Pat/Cook/Dormouse/Invisible Man | tenor | Guy de Mey
Ugly Duchess/Owl/Two | mezzo-soprano | Cynthia Jansen
Queen of Hearts | dramatic soprano | Gwyneth Jones
King of Hearts/Old Man #2/Crab | bass | Steven Humes
Frog-Footman/Seven/Dodo | bass | Rudiger Trebes
Caterpillar | solo bass clarinet | Stefan Schneider
Eaglet/Old Man #1/Executioner/Fish-Footman/Five | tenor | Christian Rieger
Chorus of Baby Animals, Creatures, Royal Entourage, 12 Jurors, Children, and Royal Children

## Scenes

[edit]

* Scene I – Dream I
* Scene II – The Pool of Tears
* Scene III – In the House of the White Rabbit
* Interlude I – Advice from a Caterpillar
* Scene IV – Pig and Pepper
* Scene V – A Mad Tea Party
* Scene VI – The Croquet Ground
* Interlude II
* Scene VII – The Trial or Who Stole the Tarts?
* Finale – Dream II

## References

[edit]

1. ^ Work details, Boosey & Hawkes
2. ^ "Alice in Wonderland, Unsuk Chin" (work details) (in French and English). IRCAM. Retrieved 4 July 2022.
3. ^ "Unsuk Chin – Alice in Wonderland". Boosey & Hawkes. Retrieved 26 November 2018.
4. ^ "Opernwelt Jahrbuch 2007". Opernwelt (in German). 2007. Archived from the original on 8 April 2019. Retrieved 18 February 2018.

## External links

[edit]

* Looking-glass Opera, by Alex Ross, The New Yorker
* Alice in Wonderland, Bavarian State Opera

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Unsuk Chin

Operas|

* Alice in Wonderland (2007)

Concertante|

* Piano Concerto (1997)
* Violin Concerto No. 1 (2001)
* Clarinet Concerto (2014)
* SPIRA—Concerto for Orchestra (2019)
* Violin Concerto No. 2 (2021)

Orchestra|

* Rocaná (2008)
* Chorós Chordón (2017)
* Frontispiece (2019)
* Subito con forza (2020)

Category

* v
* t
* e

Works by David Henry Hwang

Full-length plays|

* FOB (1980)
* Family Devotions (1981)
* Rich Relations (1986)
* M. Butterfly (1988)
* Face Value (1993)
* Golden Child (1996)
* Peer Gynt (1998)
* Tibet Through the Red Box (2004)
* Yellow Face (2007)
* Chinglish (2011)
* Kung Fu (2014)

Short plays|

* The Dance and the Railroad (1981)
* The House of Sleeping Beauties (1983)
* The Sound of a Voice (1983)
* As the Crow Flies (1986)
* Bondage (1992)
* Trying to Find Chinatown (1996)
* Bang Kok (1996)
* Merchandising (1999)
* Jade Flowerpots and Bound Feet (2001)
* The Great Helmsman (2007)
* A Very DNA Reunion (2010)
* Cain and Abel (2014)

Film/television|

* Blind Alleys (1985)
* M. Butterfly (1993)
* Golden Gate (1994)
* The Lost Empire/The Monkey King (2001)
* Possession (2002)
* The Affair (2016)

Music theatre|

* 1000 Airplanes on the Roof (1988)
* The Voyage (1992)
* The Silver River (1997)
* Aida (2000)
* Flower Drum Song (2001)
* Ainadamar (2003)
* The Sound of a Voice (2003)
* Tarzan (2006)
* Alice in Wonderland (2007)
* The Fly (2008)
* Dream of the Red Chamber (2016)
* An American Soldier (2018)
* Soft Power (2018)

* v
* t
* e

Lewis Carroll's Alice

* Alice's Adventures in Wonderland
* Through the Looking-Glass

Universe

| Characters|

| Alice's Adventures
in Wonderland|

* Alice
* portrayals
* Bill the Lizard
* Caterpillar
* Cheshire Cat
* Dodo
* Dormouse
* Duchess
* Gryphon
* Hatter
* Tarrant Hightopp
* King of Hearts
* Knave of Hearts
* March Hare
* Mock Turtle
* Mouse
* Pat
* Puppy
* Queen of Hearts
* White Rabbit
* Minor characters

|

Through the
Looking-Glass|

* Bandersnatch
* Humpty Dumpty
* Jubjub bird
* Red King
* Red Queen
* The Sheep
* The Lion and the Unicorn
* Tweedledum and Tweedledee
* White King
* White Knight
* White Queen
* Minor characters

Locations
and events|

* Wonderland
* Looking-Glass world
* Unbirthday

Poems|

* "All in the golden afternoon..."
* "How Doth the Little Crocodile"
* "The Mouse's Tale"
* "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Bat"
* "You Are Old, Father William"
* "'Tis the Voice of the Lobster"
* "Jabberwocky"
* Vorpal sword
* "The Walrus and the Carpenter"
* "Haddocks' Eyes"
* "The Mock Turtle's Song"
* The Hunting of the Snark

Related|

* Alice Liddell
* Alice syndrome
* Alice's Shop
* Illustrators
* John Tenniel
* Theophilus Carter
* The Annotated Alice
* Mischmasch
* Translations
* Alice's Adventures in Wonderland
* Through the Looking-Glass

Adaptations

| Literature|

| Novels|

* Davy and the Goblin (1884)
* The Nursery "Alice" (1890)
* The Admiral's Caravan (1891)
* A New Alice in the Old Wonderland (1895)
* Gladys in Grammarland (1896)
* The Westminster Alice (1902)
* Clara in Blunderland (1902)
* Rollo in Emblemland (1902)
* Lost in Blunderland (1903)
* John Bull's Adventures in the Fiscal Wonderland (1904)
* Alice in Blunderland: An Iridescent Dream (1904)
* Alice's Adventures in Wonderland Retold in Words of One Syllable (1905)
* New Adventures of Alice (1917)
* Alice in Orchestralia (1925)
* Alice Through the Needle's Eye (1984)
* Automated Alice (1996)
* The Looking Glass Wars (2004)
* Seeing Redd (2007)
* ArchEnemy (2009)
* Alice in Verse: The Lost Rhymes of Wonderland (2010)
* Unbirthday: A Twisted Tale (2020)

|

Comics|

* Tweedledum and Tweedledee (1943)
* Lost Girls (1991)
* Miyuki-chan in Wonderland (1993)
* Pandora Hearts (2006)
* Cheshire Crossing (2006)
* Alice in Sunderland (2007)
* Alice in Murderland (2014)
* Wonderland (2015)

Stage|

* Alice in Wonderland (1886 musical)
* Alice in Wonderland (1979 opera)
* But Never Jam Today (1979 musical)
* The Hunting of the Snark (1991 musical)
* Through the Looking Glass (2008 opera)
* Alice's Adventures in Wonderland (2011 ballet)
* Wonderland (2011 musical)
* Peter and Alice (2013 play)
* Wonder.land (2015 musical)
* Alice's Adventures Under Ground (2016 opera)
* Alice by Heart (2019 musical)

Film|

* 1903
* 1910
* 1915
* Alice Comedies (1923–1927)
* 1931
* 1933
* Betty in Blunderland (1934)
* Thru the Mirror (1936)
* 1949
* 1951
* Donald in Mathmagic Land (1959)
* Alice of Wonderland in Paris (1966)
* Jabberwocky (1971)
* 1972
* 1976
* 1976 (Spanish)
* Alice or the Last Escapade (1977)
* Jabberwocky (1977)
* 1981
* 1982
* Malice in Wonderland (1982)
* Dreamchild (1985)
* The Care Bears Adventure in Wonderland (1987)
* 1988 (Czechoslovak)
* 1988 (Australian)
* Abby in Wonderland (2008)
* Malice in Wonderland (2009)
* 2010
* Alice in Murderland (2010)
* Malice in Wonderland: The Dolls Movie (2010)
* Alice Through the Looking Glass (2016)
* Come Away (2020)
* Alice and the Land that Wonders (2020)
* Alice, Through the Looking (2021)

Television|

* Alice in Wonderland (1962)
* Alice in Wonderland or What's a Nice Kid like You Doing in a Place like This? (1966)
* Alice in Wonderland (1966)
* Alice Through the Looking Glass (1966)
* 1983 (TV film)
* Fushigi no Kuni no Alice (1983)
* 1985 (TV film)
* Adventures in Wonderland (1992)
* Alice through the Looking Glass (1998)
* Alice in Wonderland (1999)
* Alice (2009)
* Once Upon a Time in Wonderland (2013)
* Alice's Wonderland Bakery (2022)
* Descendants: The Rise of Red (2024)

Artwork|

* Alice in Wonderland sculpture (1959)
* How Doth the Little Crocodile (1998 artworks)

Music|

* "White Rabbit" (1967 song)
* "Don't Come Around Here No More" (1985 music video)
* Alice in Wonderland (2010)
* Almost Alice (2010)
* "Alice"
* "Follow Me Down"
* "Tea Party"
* Alice Through the Looking Glass (2016)
* "Just Like Fire"
* "Alice" (2020 song)

Video games|

* Through the Looking Glass (1984)
* Alice in Wonderland (1985)
* Märchen Maze (1988)
* Wonderland (1990)
* Alice: An Interactive Museum (1991)
* Alice no Paint Adventure (1995)
* Alice in Wonderland (2000)
* American McGee's Alice (2000)
* Alice in the Country of Hearts (2007)
* Alice in Wonderland (2010)
* Alice: Madness Returns (2011)

Related|

* Dungeonland (1983 module)
* The Land Beyond the Magic Mirror (1983 module)
* Disney franchise

* Category

Portal:

* Opera

Authority control databases

International|

* VIAF

National|

* Germany
* United States

Other|

* BRAHMS

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