Children’s fairy tales undergo mutation

When we wrote last Friday of the vast changes that books, theater and TV have undergone during the last century, we received quite a number of likes and dislikes from the social media, and two to three comments from the traditional  media. This, to us was indication of the power of Facebook, Twitter and the latest rage in the Instagram.

Like it or not, changes are upon us in all areas and all means of communication. A recent announcement from Repertory Philippines of its coming staging of the fairy tale Alice in Wonderland on Aug. 17, got us into thinking of what these changes have been, how they have changed with advances in technology, and how they, too, have affected the lives of the men and women who depend on them for their livelihood.

A fairy tale features fantasy characters like fairies, goblins, elves, trolls, dwarves, giants, mermaids and gnomes, and usually includes magic and enchantments. The books normally set the tales in a place and time not recognizable to humans. They also start with the words, “Once upon a time…” The popular Grimm’s fairy tales were also known to appeal to adults.

For over 150 years, the fairy tale of Alice has captivated children with its timeless and whimsical story written by Lewis Caroll, retold as a Broadway musical adaptation with toe-tapping music and dance numbers. The play follows Alice as she meets all of Wonderland’s residents like the King & Queen of Hearts, Tweedledee and Tweedledum, the Gryphon, Mock Turtle, Dormouse, Mad Hatter and March Hare, the Dutchess, Cheshire Cat and the White Rabbit.

Joy Virata, the brainchild of Rep’s Theatre for Young Audiences, launched Sleeping Beauty in 1992. Since then, other fairy tales shown have been Cinderella, Aladdin, Jack & The Beanstalk, The Emperor’s New Clothes, Snow White & The Seven Dwarfs, Alice in Wonderland, Beauty & The Beast, Disney’s Aladdin, Disney’s Cinderella Kids, Disney’s Mulan, Jr. and Seussical. For details, call tel. nos. 571-6926 and 571-4941. Tickets are available through Ticketworld (891-9999) or visit www.ticketworld.com.ph

But it is not only in theater that fairy tales have found their audience. Alice in Wonderland is a 2010 American computer-animated and live action-fantasy film directed by Tim Burton, written by Linda Woolverton and released by Walt Disney Pictures. Stars include Mia Wasikowska, Johnny Depp, Anne Hathaway and Helena Bonham Carter. The film is inspired by English author Lewis Carroll’s 1865 fantasy novel Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland.

Today, a script from the Broadway play signed by the cast of the 1983 Great Performances production of Alice has been unearthed.This was one of Burton’s last performances, having died soon after.Blue ink notations in unknown hand 88 pages, 9 x 11 1/2, bound in purple cardstock covers with two brass binders. This is Kaye Ballard’s copy of the script for a Great Performances TV production of Alice in Wonderland, first aired on WNET on Oct. 3, 1983. Kate is Burton’s daughter. We wonder if this item is being sold in auctions.

Naturally, we are certain that plays would be fair game to television. We are told that Fairy Tales, a British television drama anthology, had produced in 2008 the stories of Rapunzel of the long hair whose mother manager prevents her from interacting with men. But she meets a man who pretends to be a woman and the two begin a relationship. We are certain, the original writers of Rapunzel would either have a fit or die laughing. Rapunzel has undergone numerous changes in past eras.

Same guys also producedCinderella which told of a cleaner working at the anthropology wing of a university, becomes assistant to a celebrity anthropologist. The head of the department wants his own choices to be the assistant. Someone along the way we lost the story of Cinderella. They also produced The Emperor’s New Clothes as well as Billy Goat where humans and trolls co-exist. And finally, we began to appreciate the TV series.

Lately, fairy tales have also began to invade digital films. We remember watching Snow White and The Huntsman where Kristen Stewart of Twilight fame played the unlikely role of Snow White while having an affair with her director Rupert Sanders. In the tradition of fairy tales, the story begins, “Once upon a time, King Magnus and his Queen have a beautiful daughter, Snow White, who is raised with her best friend William. When the Queen passes away, the King grieves her death but has to fight against a dark invader army. He rescues a beautiful prisoner, Ravenna, and on the next day he marries her.”

The audience enjoyed the film, but we think they enjoyed more the personal drama when Kristen apologized to her Twilight partner Robert Pattinson, admitting to the affair saying, “This momentary indiscretion has jeopardized the most important thing in my life, the person I love and respect the most, Rob. I love him, I love him, I’m so sorry.”

Life is indeed more interesting than the movies.

(E-mail your thoughts to [email protected].)