Review | ‘Alice by Heart’ at Santa Barbara’s Center Stage

As a firm believer that books are one of the happiest, healthiest ways to escape from the harsh realities of real life, I was immediately intrigued by the premise of Alice by Heart, the latest musical offering from Out of the Box Theatre Company. The crux of the story, featuring beautiful music by Duncan Sheik (Spring Awakening, American Psycho) with lyrics by Steven Sater, who co-wrote the book with Jessie Nelson (Waitress), is that childhood friends (and possible soulmates) Alice and Alfred huddle in an Underground station as WWII bombs go off above ground. 

Alfred has tuberculosis and Alice tries to keep him alive and engaged by retelling him their childhood favorite story of Alice in Wonderland. It’s a journey that takes them — and the audience — through a rabbit hole to a variety of increasingly trippy new worlds which reimagine the already trippy Wonderland tale, 

Alice’s character provides a very strong spine for the show. Cassidy Broderick (a student at Bishop Diego High School) commands the stage with a poise and conviction far beyond her years. According to her bio, she’s been performing in community and regional theater productions since she was 8, and that solid training definitely shows. She embodies the role of Alice like a second skin, and her vocals, particularly in duets with Alfred (charmingly played by Nolan Montgomery, another local “theater kid” a few years older who went to Dos Pueblos) on “Another Room in Your Head,” “West of World,” “Still,” and “Afternoon” are exceptional. 

There are lots of good numbers in the show, including some clever caterpillar choreography and very silly lobster dance, and in terms of vocal acrobatics, “Isn’t it a Trial” is a fabulous showcase, particularly for Marisol Miller-Wave as the Queen of Hearts.  

Alice by Heart runs through Sunday, November 19 at Center Stage Theatre. For more information and to purchase tickets, see centerstagetheater.org/show-details/alice-by-heart.