In a London Underground shelter during the Blitz of 1940, a teenage girl seeks refuge in a familiar story while war rages above her.
Alice by Heart, opening Oct. 29 at Samford University, reimagines the beloved world of Wonderland through the lens of loss, resilience and hope. For the theatre students bringing the production to life, the experience has extended far beyond the stage. Over months of rehearsals, they have immersed themselves in history, wrestled with profound questions of grief and loss, and discovered new depths in their craft.
Junior Railey Spurlock, a musical theatre major, plays Alice. The role resonated because of the character's youth and resilience. Alice is only 15 years old, navigating war, love, grief and the uncertainty of growing up all at once. What surprised Spurlock most was the character's persistence.
"She is incredibly emotional and vulnerable, but she refuses to give up on the things and people she loves," Spurlock said. "There is such a beautiful strength in that."
As she prepared for the role, Spurlock found personal connections to the show's themes of grief, resilience and imagination. Drawing from her own experiences, she came to view Alice's journey not as an escape from pain but as a way of processing it.
"I think this show reminds us that imagination does not necessarily take away our pain, but it can give us a way to process it, survive it and find beauty in the middle of it," she said.
The role demanded complete commitment. Alice rarely leaves the stage, requiring immense stamina. The challenge has helped her develop greater focus, trust and confidence as a performer.
GET TICKETS: Samford Theatre's production of Alice by Heart opens Oct. 29
The cast's exploration of the story extended well beyond the rehearsal room. Research became an essential part of the creative process as students sought to understand the realities of World War II and the emotional landscape of the characters they portray.
Spurlock spent part of her summer studying tuberculosis and the historical context surrounding the story, uncovering details that shaped her understanding of Alice's circumstances. Those discoveries, while never explicitly stated in the script, helped inform the emotional stakes she carries throughout the production.
That commitment to research was shared by senior musical theatre student Abigail Rush. She portrays the larger-than-life Queen of Hearts while also embodying the Red Cross nurse who inspires the character in Alice's imagination. To prepare, Rush dove into historical accounts of the Blitz and the experiences of wartime nurses.
"There were many hours on the weekends where I would sit and read people's stories during that time period and see how I could relate bits and pieces of it to my characters," Rush said.
The result is a Queen of Hearts who remains recognizable to audiences while carrying greater emotional weight. Though she still possesses the iconic personality audiences expect, Rush sees the character as a reminder of the difficult reality Alice faces.
"Don't worry," she said, "the 'off with their heads' mentality is still very much a part of this Queen."
Rush credits conversations with castmates for helping her uncover new layers within the role. One of her favorite parts of the process was collaborating with fellow actors to better understand how characters connect to one another and the story.
That same spirit of collaboration has shaped the experience of junior Bryant Swords, who plays Alfred, Alice's closest companion. Alfred's journey is among the show's most heartbreaking, and Swords, a musical theatre major, was drawn to the complexity of a character facing profound grief at such a young age.
Portraying Alfred requires constant shifts between emotional and physical states. In addition to playing Alfred, Swords moves among several Wonderland counterparts, navigating rapid transitions between joy and sorrow, strength and vulnerability. The role has taught him the importance of contrast in storytelling.
"Playing Alfred has helped me to better understand the use of stillness and the power of silence," Swords said. "With such an emotional rollercoaster of a show, I have better learned how to make the joyful moments joyful and the tragic moments tragic."
The song "Afternoon" has left a lasting impression.
"It has allowed me to appreciate daily life that much more," Swords said. "I want to be here for those I love and would never want to leave them behind."
That search for deeper meaning has also shaped senior musical theatre major Covington Reardon's approach to the Cheshire Cat, one of the show's most recognizable and mysterious characters. While audiences may expect a whimsical guide through Wonderland, Reardon discovered a character whose wisdom is rooted in her own experience with loss. One detail that captivated Reardon was the recurring image of the Cheshire smile.
"The idea of all the things a smile could mean or accomplish prompted my exploration of the tactics Cheshire uses as she guides Alice at different points of her story," Reardon said. "A smile can reassure, can challenge, can dismiss or can ask one to look deeper and honestly see the truth of a situation."
As rehearsals progressed, Reardon came to see the Cheshire Cat as a bridge between Wonderland and reality. While many of the story's fantastical characters exist within Alice's imagination, she believes Cheshire understands the difficult truths waiting outside Wonderland's borders.
"Cheshire sees the ways in which a world at war, full of death and chaos, has begun to resemble the insanity of Wonderland," Reardon said. "She also sees the value of Alice coming to a place that shapes her reality into a more palatable narrative so that she might be able to process the loss of her childhood and best friend."
Like Rush, Reardon points to collaboration as one of the most rewarding aspects of the production. A lengthy table discussion early in rehearsals allowed cast members to explore character motivations, historical context and the themes that underpin the story. Through that process, Reardon found herself reflecting on the show's central message.
"Playing Cheshire has allowed me to consider the depth of the themes that Alice by Heart explores, including the loss of one's childhood and loved ones," she said. "As Alice comes to the end of her story, she sees that 'sometimes we overcome, just by going on.' Hope endures."
The cast speaks about the production as more than a performance. It has become an opportunity to develop discipline, empathy and artistic courage while balancing demanding rehearsal schedules alongside classes, jobs and campus life. Those experiences mirror the values the students hope audiences will carry home.
Rush believes audiences may arrive expecting a familiar childhood story and leave with something much deeper.
"I hope they come away with a desire to be more present in the moments with the ones we love and knowing when to let those moments go," she said.
Spurlock hopes audiences remember that hope can coexist with hardship.
"Even in the darkest seasons of life, there is still room for hope, love and faith," she said.
That sentiment echoes throughout the cast's reflections on the production. Whether through Alice's persistence, Alfred's devotion, the Queen of Hearts' hard truths or the Cheshire Cat's wisdom, the students discovered a common thread running through the story: hope endures.
Beneath the whimsy of Wonderland lies a story about resilience, human connection and the power of imagination to help people endure life's most difficult moments.
As opening night approaches, the students bringing that story to life are discovering those lessons for themselves, one rehearsal at a time. In the process, they are learning that some of the most meaningful journeys begin not by escaping reality, but by finding the courage to face it.
