Sydney review- Mad Hatter’s Tea Party: bright, exaggerated, outrageous and funny

By Paul Kiely

Mad Hatter’s Tea Party

Directed by Mike Finch

A Broad Encounters and The Grand Electric, in partnership with

Fever Production

The Grand Electric

199 Cleveland Street, Surry Hills

Season: 7 – 25 January 2026   

Bookings: https://thegrandelectricsydney.com

               Duration: 60 minutes approx (No interval)

For a fun theatrical experience for children of all ages, the Mad Hatter’s Tea Party at The Grand Electric is a must-see!

The venue alone sets the tone for this hour-long whimsical trip where the sights and sounds of a magical world excite and astonish.

Using characters created by Lewis Carroll in his 1866 classic ‘Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland’, the Mad Hatter’s Tea Party is the backdrop for a series of stage acts.

Audiences are amused, mystified and sometimes mortified!

Astonishment is the first reaction as the Mad Hatter contorts and twists to somehow feed her whole body through the head of a tennis racquet. The little faces I saw were transfixed.

What followed was an abundance of colour, sound and lighting effects.

Amongst the many, the Cheshire Cat performed an amazing silk dance and the March Hare battled to keep half a dozen bowls spinning on tall poles.

Caterpillar transformed into a butterfly whilst dancing to Queen’s ‘Breakfree’ song; it was an hilarious sequence which would make Freddy Mercury blush.

The Red Kween tore up a copy of a broadsheet newspaper and then miraculously restored it to its original. He then went on to roller skate the aisles causing much mayhem.

Let us not forget the antics of the terrible twins, Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum who bump into each other and perform impressive acrobatic stunts.

The actual tea party involved youngsters joining in. To their delight, a huge muck-up ensued involving giant-sized sugar cubes thrashing about the audience. The children’s laughter still rings in my ears.

Directed by Mike Finch, the Mad Hatter’s Tea Party is a wonderful experience.

The show is bright, exaggerated, outrageous and funny.

In some instances, it may be slightly risqué, but only in ways the adults would notice.

By using an imaginative setting, mirror balls, fog machine and selective spotlighting, an atmosphere of mystique was present.

The performers were true professionals and made sure that their goal of delighting the young audience was achieved.

Well done to Tamara Campbell, Daniel Gorski, Casey Douglas, Marianna Joslin, Mozes, Alicia Rose Quinn and Tim Dennis.

The producers describe Mad Hatter’s Tea Party as a ‘Circus-Cabaret’.

It is true to say there is something for everyone, all ages, in this show.