Lecture, Conway Hall, Monday, 26 Jan 2026 - 19:00

Alice’s Adventures in Musical Adaptation

A whimsical tea party scene with floating roses and a Mad Hatter's hat

Walt Disney spent nearly three decades working on Alice in Wonderland, struggling to decide how to turn Lewis Carroll’s episodic stories into a single two-hour story. It took twelve songwriters to write over forty songs – more than thirty of which were discarded – to create a satisfying musical adaptation, and the film had a mixed reception. Why was music vital to bring to life Carroll’s unique fairy tale world? Why was it so difficult? And how did the film eventually become a classic?

Dominic Broomfield-McHugh

Professor Dominic Broomfield-McHugh

Visiting Professor of Film and Theatre Music

Dominic Broomfield-McHugh is Gresham Visiting Professor of Film and Theatre Music. He is also Professor of Music at the University of Sheffield and is a...

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