Illustration from a 1915 stage production of Alice in Wonderland

Alice in Wonderland at the ASOC Playhouse: Astoria’s Winter Children’s Theatre in 2013

ByMegan Harlow

Photo: Wikimedia Commons, public domain.

In March 2013, a cast of young performers took Lewis Carroll’s Alice in Wonderland to the stage of the ASOC Playhouse, 129 W. Bond St. in Astoria’s Uniontown neighborhood. It was the fifth season of the Astor Street Opry Company’s Winter Children’s Theatre.

The production

The company staged Alice in Wonderland: A Children’s Operetta and Musical Adventure in One Act. Contemporary listings show it opened March 8 and ran through March 24, 2013, with evening shows at 7:30 p.m. and weekend matinees at 2 p.m. Auditions in January were open to children ages 8 to 14 with no experience required, and there were parts for more than 36 young performers.

According to the Chinook Observer’s announcement, Becka Blacksten-Ernst directed, with co-direction by Heather Ramsdell and music direction by ChrisLynn Taylor. Terrie McDonald designed the costumes and Julie House the sets. CMH Pediatrics sponsored the show. Tickets were kept low, a few dollars for children, so families could attend together, and the run drew full houses on its opening weekend.

How children’s theatre started at ASOC

The Astor Street Opry Company was founded in 1984 and is best known for Shanghaied in Astoria, its long-running summer melodrama about the city’s waterfront past. Once the company had its own playhouse on Bond Street in 2008, it could run regular youth programs. These included all-child productions such as Charlotte’s Web, a “Junior Shanghaied” for performers ages 9 to 14, and the annual Winter Children’s Theatre. Alice in 2013 was that winter series’ fifth show. (Read more about Shanghaied in Astoria.)

Youth theater in Astoria today

ASOC still produces shows at 129 W. Bond St. and posts its current season, auditions and volunteer opportunities on its website, asocplay.com. Families looking for stage experience on the North Coast can also check:

  • Clatsop Community College’s performing arts program
  • School drama programs in the Astoria, Warrenton-Hammond, Seaside and Knappa districts
  • Seasonal productions at the Coaster Theatre Playhouse in Cannon Beach

Groups that need funding for youth arts projects can apply to the Clatsop County Cultural Coalition, which awards small grants each year.

Sources

  • Chinook Observer, “Run twice as fast as you can to ‘Alice in Wonderland’ auditions,” Jan. 11, 2013
  • Astor Street Opry Company, asocplay.com
  • Discover Our Coast, “A children’s classic goes on stage,” Feb. 12, 2009

This article replaces an event listing originally published at this address in March 2013.

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