Wonderland
Wonderland was produced by NYU Steinhardt in January 2020. The production had 30 actors in wireless microphones and an 18-piece band onstage. The biggest challenge was cutting the vocals through the acoustic sound of the band and controlling the sound level onstage so the actors could hear each other. There were also several actors who played instruments throughout the production, including El Gato playing acoustic guitar and the Caterpillar playing a saxophone that he also used as a real hookah. I used wireless microphone beltpacks, a DPA 4099 for the saxophone, and a line out from the acoustic/electric pickup that attached to the instruments to amplify them during their solos.
There were also many moments that required cue creation. The biggest one was Alice traveling backward in time. I used reverse cymbals, a rewinding cassette, and a reverse clock strike to create the effect. Other sounds included an elevator to Wonderland, a De-Brainer machine, earthquakes with rattling china, and Alice crashing through a looking glass.
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The programming on the console was complicated. During the club anthem song "Welcome to Wonderland," almost every single actor in the show had a solo line. This meant switching console scenes frequently to make sure my A1 had the correct DCAs to mix each of these moments. The musical style range of the show also dictated many different desired aesthetics. For the boy band number ("One Knight",) I utilized reverb whereas on the Red Queen's "Off With Their Heads," I wanted the voices to be as crisp and sharp as possible. "Drink Me" is sung by "unearthly voices," which entailed having the entire ensemble singing offstage with huge reverb to create a psychadelic soundscape. The styles of the voices had to match the genre of the music, which changed from song to song.
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Director: Gabriel Barre
Choreographer: Jennifer Paulson Lee
Music Director: Ana Flavia Zuim
Scenic Designer: Mark Morton
Lighting Designer: Jason Kantrowitz
Costume Designer: Heather Jackson
Sound Designer: Megan Culley
Stage Manager: Shannon Stewart
"Through the Looking Glass"
Young Alice is put in the Debrainer machine
"Together"
"Through the Looking Glass"