Composer
Amy Scurria
Librettist
Zane Corriher
Director & Dramaturg
Amy Hutchison
An Opera for Everyone
ALICE invites audiences down the rabbit hole to experience a spellbinding world of wonder, laughter, and self-discovery.
Journey with Alice through soaring arias, mad duets, and outlandish ensembles as she encounters curious and confounding creatures: the nervous, but regal White Rabbit, the condescending and sleepy caterpillar, a dismissive and vulgar Duchess, the silly, but tragic, Hatter and Hare, the mysterious and mystical Cheshire Cat, a sycophantic choir of cards, a covertly beneficent King, and finally, the cruel and vainglorious Queen of Hearts.
This adaptation of Lewis Carroll’s beloved novel is a quest for identity, to answer the question that burns deep within the furnace of every human being: Who are you?
INSTRUMENTATION
CHAMBER ORCHESTRA
1,1,1,1; 1,0,0,0; timp, pno, strings
FULL ORCHESTRA
2,2,2,2; 4,2,2,1; timp; 3 perc; harp; strings
ELECTRO-ACOUSTIC ENSEMBLE
accordian, electric guitar, keyboard, drumset
FLEXIBLE INSTRUMENTATION
just ask!
CAST
ALICE
lyric coloratura soprano
QUEEN OF HEARTS
dramatic soprano
CATERPILLAR & KING OF HEARTS
bass
CHESHIRE CAT
mezzo-soprano
MAD HATTER
tenor
SISTER & DUCHESS
1-2 mezzo-sopranos / ensemble
MARCH HARE
countertenor / ensemble
WHITE RABBIT
actor / clown
GRYFFON
baritone / ensemble
DORMOUSE
child supernumerary
BILL THE LIZARD
actor / clown
WONDERLAND ENSEMBLE
SATB chorus
(trees, party guests, creatures, card soldiers, courtiers)
WONDERLAND FLOWERS
children's chorus
(flowers, frog and fish footmen, hedgehogs, et al.)
PRODUCTION HISTORY
January, 2022
Arts of the Albemarle piano / vocal staged workshop
July, 2023
Red River Lyric Opera Festival Chamber Orchestra Workshop Performances
August, 2023
Presented at the WTF Conference in Raleigh, NC
January, 2024
Presented at N.O.A. Conference
2024
NC Arts Council Artist Development Grant
March, 2024
Presented at SETC Convention
April, 2024
University of Utah Opera Full Orchestra Workshop Performances
2024
American Prize in Opera, Third Place
2024
Dee Endowment Grant
2025
N.O.A. Production Award, Third Place
June, 2025
Libretto Reading at Chicago Dramatists
2025
American Prize in Opera Production, Finalist
SYNOPSIS
Alice a curious, imaginative girl feels out of step with the expectations of the rigid world around her. At a garden tea party, Alice’s vivid inner life collides with social norms, and she is ridiculed for her wildness. She escapes by following a White Rabbit into the forest where she falls into Wonderland, a topsy-turvy world with its own inscrutable creatures and customs.
As Alice explores Wonderland, she discovers a series of surprising characters: a condescending Caterpillar who demands definition, a volatile Duchess with a penchant for pepper, an army of playing cards marching the world to ruin, a wise and mysterious cat, and an infinitely Mad Tea Party. Alice searches for belonging and meaning in a Wonderland governed by fear, spectacle, whimsy, and nonsense.
Casting a shadow over Wonderland, the tyrant Queen of Hearts humiliates her subjects and demands obedience with constant threats. Alice empathizes with the terrified populace, and she challenges the Queen’s unjust rules during a game of croquet. When the outraged Queen condemns Alice to a trial for her insubordination, Alice must keep her wits or risk losing her head.
Amidst the danger, Alice bravely confronts the Queen and encourages Wonderland to resist her tyranny. Through courage, humor, wit, and self-knowledge, Alice upends the Queen’s power and affirms a deeper truth: identity cannot be dictated by force - it originates from within. ALICE is about reclaiming individual agency, trusting one’s inner voice, and self-empowerment through imagination and joy.
CREATIVE TEAM BIOS
AMY SCURRIA is a multi-award-winning composer whose work continues to be performed worldwide, including on the Perlman Stage at Carnegie Hall and by the Philadelphia Orchestra at the Kimmel Center. Last fall, Scurria's music was included at the Swedish opening of Parliament with guest speaker, Bishop Marianne Edgar Budde. Late-diagnosed as autistic, Scurria began composing at age 8, with music serving as her primary language for exploring emotion and experience. Her creative process blends improvisation, movement, and a vivid internal ear, techniques shaped by her unique neurodivergent perspective. In 1998, she became the youngest composer published by Theodore Presser Company, and later founded her own publishing company, Adamo Press. They studied at the Shepherd School of Music at Rice University (B.M.), Peabody Conservatory at Johns Hopkins (M.M.), Duke University (PhD), La Schola Cantorum (now EAMA), and the Aspen Music Festival. Scurria's music has been supported by such grants as the Thomas D. Dee, II Endowment Grant, the NC Arts Council, Evan Frankel Fellowship, Aleane Webb Dissertation Research Award, and the Duke University Summer Research Fellowship. Scurria has held fellowships with the World Projects Festival at Carnegie Hall (2 years), University of Utah, Red River Lyric Opera Festival, Collective Euphonia, and Shepherd College. A strong advocate for the autistic community, Scurria has been featured on podcasts and in articles. Scurria continues to conduct presentations wherever possible to raise awareness about the truth of the autistic community, to fight against the misinformation and myths about us, and to present autism through the lens of any other existence: one filled with joy, complexity, humanity, and diversity, dispelling the myths that we are a community to be cured or extinguished.
ZANE CORRIHER is an author of short stories, novels, opera libretti, a seasoned public speaker, a leadership development and diversity, equity and inclusion consultant, among many other hats that he wears. He made his worldwide debut as librettist for ALICE (music by Amy Scurria). Zane began his early career attending Union Presbyterian Seminary in Richmond, VA where he earned two master’s degrees (Master’s Thesis: How Historical-Critical, Narrative-Critical, and Linguistic Analysis of Relevant Old and New Testament Texts Reveals Unfounded Positions of Exclusion and Judgement against the LGBTQ+ community). Zane also enjoyed the honor of serving as Professor of Ancient Greek for the graduate students at the seminary. A passionate and engaging writer, public speaker, teacher, and mentor, Zane transitioned to the corporate world where he enjoys a fascinating career with Mondelez International as a global leader and creator of leadership training. His job has enabled travel throughout North and South America, Europe, and Asia. Zane’s global work has inspired many aspects of the ALICE libretto. Zane has won numerous awards for his international training programs and is a highly sought-after consultant and coach for entrepreneurs, leaders, leadership teams, and organizations around the world. Of his many honors, there are none as great as serving as husband to the composer, Amy Scurria, and father to their beloved child.
Director AMY HUTCHISON stages "wildly imaginative" opera and theater productions throughout the US and worldwide, including HANSEL & GRETEL (Opernhaus Zürich, Canadian Opera Company, The Juilliard School, televised Live from Lincoln Center); William Bolcom’s A VIEW FROM THE BRIDGE (Teatro dell'Opera di Roma, Washington National Opera, Portland Opera); PORGY AND BESS (Milan, Paris, Tokyo, Düsseldorf, Venice); CARMEN (Kansas City, Milwaukee, Columbus), AS ONE (Chicago, Santa Barbara, San Antonio, Pensacola, Duluth); TURANDOT (Orlando), LA TRAVIATA (Costa Mesa), DON PASQUALE (Indianapolis), and many more. Amy's exuberant work has been hailed as “an opera lover’s dreams on a golden platter," from Verdi’s swashbuckling epic IL CORSARO for Opera Festival of Chicago to her “brilliantly mounted double bill" of Donizetti's IL PIGMAGLIONE & RITA for Chicago Opera Theater. Hutchison’s historic production of William Grant Still’s masterwork TROUBLED ISLAND for South Shore Opera Company of Chicago was named the number one classical music event of the year by the Chicago Sun-Times. As a director for Chicago Opera Theatre’s Vanguard Initiative, Amy has acted as a critical partner in the development of new operas. She frequently collaborates with Chicago Fringe Opera, Folks Operetta, and companies throughout Chicagoland. Amy has served on the directing staffs of Lyric Opera of Chicago and Houston Grand Opera. She currently teaches at DePaul University and Roosevelt University, and has taught and directed at esteemed opera programs including Indiana University, Boston University, Northwestern University, and Westminster Choir College. Amy proudly serves on the board of directors for About Face Theatre and as an advisor for South Chicago Dance Theatre.
COMPOSER ARTISTIC STATEMENT
Every human experiences trauma. It is sewn throughout history and the human experience. For me, music is a way of moving beyond trauma, of exploring what comes after, exploring the ways that we rise, redefine ourselves, and claim our power. I am drawn to stories that acknowledge suffering but are not consumed by it. Whether in opera, choral works, or instrumental compositions, my goal is to illuminate the moment after darkness, the turning point when resilience takes hold. My works blend intellect and intuition. I deeply value collaboration in the creative process. Collaboration means opening my ears, mind, and heart, and listening. Listening deeply so that I might bring the greatest understanding possible to each character that is set to music. Because I value my work as a conduit to connect audiences, I create music that is compelling to non-musicians as well as the most seasoned musicians. My goal is to create operatic works that reach as wide an audience as possible. There is no greater gift in my mind than that music is a powerful tool to bring us all together. I have spent decades studying the great melodies. I strive with every work to create melodies worthy of singing. Of remembering. Of evoking emotion in the listener. Whether performed in a grand opera house, a concert hall, or an intimate recital space, my work aspires to leave a lasting impression, resonating long after the final note has sounded. My hope is that audiences walk away not only with melodies still singing in their minds but with a sense of the resilience, hope, and transformation that music can embody.