March Hare brings good times

Joshua Mather brings “good times” in his portrayal of the March Hare to the Children’s Theatre Production of “Alice In Wonderland,” which begins a two-week run on Monday.

Mather, technically a first-year Mt. Hood student after attending off-and-on the last few years, read for a few other parts before landing on March Hare. “I kept reading his lines… and he has these really great lines where he says rude stuff to Alice,” he said.

His dream is to be “either an actor or a reality star,” he said. When he was 4, he wanted to be a mermaid, but at age 7 he was in the play, “Cinderella.”

“I was kind of shy before that, but then I did Cinderella and it like let me out of my box, and I wanted to be an actor,” Mather said. “I came alive on stage, I didn’t know what living was ‘til I found the stage.”

He tries to put his own spin on the role, such as lightly “twerking” as he enters the stage. He says he’s not a mean person in real life, but enjoys it onstage, including his role of the Rat in last year’s Children’s Theatre Production of “Fantastic Mr. Fox,” where he also played the young badger.

In high school productions, Mather has played many parts, including a Nazi in “Anne Frank” and a dancer in “Music Man.” Mather also has tried some challenging auditions, such as “American Idol” a few years ago. Though he didn’t make the cut that day, he said he had fun trying.

In different versions of the play, March Hare has typically been portrayed as more rabbit-like than human. For this performance, Mather said, “I am more human-like than rabbit-like… I got style.”

He said he and the other “Alice” actors have been trying to find their “inner laugh,” since they are constantly laughing on stage. ”That’s interesting, ’cause you have to find a laugh for your character instead of your (own) laugh, so it doesn’t sound fake,” he said.

Mather called this his “most fun and funniest” role yet.

“March Hare is just fun and wants to have a good time, and I think I do a good job of that,” he said.

The cast is busy with last minute preparations, including an all-day rehearsal on Saturday. “We’re getting prepared. It’s coming along smoothly,” Mather said.

The play opens Monday for school groups only, and continues throughout the week. The lone performance open to the general public will be at 2 p.m. on Nov. 16.