Oxford, ville historique de l'Angleterre, et la région environnante sera la grande scène pour allées et venues considérablement curieux ce Juillet 7, 2012.
Pourquoi Juillet 7, 2012?
“Dans l'après-midi d'un été tranquille, nous glissons; pour nos deux rames, avec peu de compétences, par petites mains retordus…” — Alice au pays des merveilles.
Juillet 7, 2012 is the beginning of a weekend of Alice-related events celebrating the 150th anniversary of the first telling of Alice au pays des merveilles to Alice Liddell and her sisters. The Alice story begins at Christ Church, Oxford.
Why Christ Church in Oxford?
“And what is the use of a book,” thought Alice, “without pictures or conversations?” — Alice au pays des merveilles.
It was at Christ Church, Oxford that Charles Dodgson (pen name Lewis Carroll) first met the children of then-Dean Henry Liddell (head of the College). Their names were Harry, Alice, Lorina et Edith. Dodgson was photographing the College Cathedral from the Deanery garden. While in the process, he was approached by Alice and her two sisters who wanted to be photographed. A friendship blossomed and they became regular visitors to his rooms, and Dodgson to their nursery. During the long process of sitting to have their photographs taken, Dodgson would tell the children stories to keep them entertained. He was inspired by familiar things and people in the surrounding town when telling these stories. D'où, Christ Church College and other parts Oxford played a very important part in the creation of Alice au pays des merveilles. Depuis 2008, the Story Museum of Oxford has produced Alice’s Day to celebrate Carroll’s famous stories. “This year being the 150th anniversary, we have some special events lined up to make the weekend extra special,” said The Story Museum’s Marketing and Communications Director, Cath Nightingale. Special events such as performances by Curious Company.
Why Curious Company?
“Every time I perform I am inspired by the encounters I have with complete strangers, privileged encounters allowed only by the rules of fantasy and the imagination.” — Louise Rennie, producer/performer/owner of Curious Company.
My daughter Gabriella and I first experienced Curious Company in 2008. And if you come to our book signing at Waterstone’s in Oxford on July 7, you will discover why we featured them in our book, The Real Alice au pays des merveilles. On Alice’s Day, Curious Company will be staging another one of its now famously innovative Alice au pays des merveilles themed performances on the streets and in other public spaces around the city of Oxford. This gem of a theatrical organization revels in bringing something magical and memorable to each presentation that guarantees to take everyone down the rabbit hole and show him a really good time. “We are gatekeepers to Wonderland,” explains Louise Rennie. “We make theater that wraps itself around the audience; they stop being audience if they even ever thought they were in the first place.” On July 7, performances are built around the themes of Cards and Croquet.
Why the Cards?
“Why the fact is, you see, Miss, this here ought to have been a red rose-tree and we put a white one in by mistake; and if the Queen was to find out, we should all have our heads cut off.” — Alice au pays des merveilles.
The Cards have a simple but important job to do in Alice au pays des merveilles, and that is to paint the roses RED! The penalty for failure is fatal, so their motivation is strong. What can we expect from Curious Company’s 5-handed card game?
“Being cards as well as soldiers,” explains Louise, “they perform complex and seemingly pointless marching routines all prompted by the language of card games, such as ‘cut’, ‘split’ and ‘shuffle’, and offer up card tricks to order. With healthy doses of slapstick, acrobatics, clowning and contemporary dance, the Cards animate all manner of spaces and will amuse all kinds of audiences.”
The Cards will be dealt at The Story Museum in Oxford. All bids are raised as they split through the town to the Ashmolean Museum before shuffling across to the Museum of Natural History to play a game of Croquet with the Queen.
Why Croquet?
“The Queen! The Queen!” — Alice au pays des merveilles.
On Alice’s Day when the Queen barks, “You DO play croquet!” members of the audience need to say “Oui!” and give her their best curtsey or bow. You will already know if you are a hoop or a hedgehog, so it is just a matter of whose team you are on. Either way, be prepared to keep the Queen happy. And if the Queen is in one of her moods (which is more than likely), you need to do what she tells you. Rappeler, the Queen likes to be flattered. Presents are good too.
The Rules of the Game?
“Rules? What rules?” says Louise. “Alice doesn’t have a chance!”
Pourquoi Juillet 8, 2012?
“Qu'est-ce qu'un Race Caucus?” asked Alice. — Alice au pays des merveilles.
On Sunday, Juillet 8, the day before the Olympic flame passes through Oxford, the organizers of Alice’s Day are turning convention on its head with their own eccentric forerunner to the Olympic Games. In the spirit of the original story, the Caucus Race is a…
“Pas de chambre, Pas de chambre!” cried the Editor.
Find out more about Jour d'Alice in upcoming articles…
Photos courtesy of Curious Company.
Pour plus d'articles Alice: cliquez ici
C. M. Rubin est l'auteur de deux séries en ligne largement lecture pour lequel elle a reçu une 2011 Upton Sinclair prix, “La recherche globale pour l'éducation” et “Comment allons-nous savoir?” Elle est également l'auteur de trois livres à succès, Y compris The Real Alice au pays des merveilles.
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