Disney Junior’s animated series Alice’s Wonderland Bakery is a fresh, kid-friendly take on Alice in Wonderland. The new series focuses on Alice’s great-granddaughter and features new versions of beloved characters including The Mad Hatter, The March Hare, Queen of Hearts, and the Tweedledee and Tweedledum twins. And in this peppy yet educational series, Alice is a budding baker who whips up special treats in the enchanted Wonderland Bakery.
Alice’s Wonderland Bakery premieres on February 9, 2022, on the Disney Channel, Disney Junior, and Disney+. In support of its upcoming launch, executive producer Chelsea Beyl (Doc McStuffins) joined voice cast members Libby Rue (“Alice”), Donald Faison (“Harry the March Hare”), Eden Espinosa (“Queen of Hearts”), and one half of the renamed Tweedledee twins, Bobby Moynihan (“Tweedle Don’t”) for the Television Critics Association’s virtual winter press tour.
Executive producer Chelsea Beyl confirmed they used the 1951 animated feature film as a jumping-off point. “We did take all those wonderful, curious characters, but then we adapted them for preschoolers,” explained Chelsea Beyl. “So, we took the zany, the silliness, the whimsy of Wonderland and that’s what kind of made it so natural for kids.”
Beyl and art director/co-executive producer Frank Montagna studied the film and drew inspiration from its style and color palette. ”We really wanted to make the connection between the 1951 Disney feature and our show because there’s a lot of versions of Alice in Wonderland out there, but our show is inspired by the 1951 feature. So, of course, we wanted to include a lot of that Mary Blair influence of the curvy shapes and the beautiful colors,” said Beyl. “The movie is very dark in palette, but I think even some of our framing shots are straight out of the movie – colors and shapes, and even if you look at Alice’s outfit, she’s got the blue chef’s coat, the white apron, the bow. It’s a different look for a modern Alice but it’s very much reminiscent of original Alice.”
Donald Faison, the voice of Harry the March Hare, declared himself a huge fan of the original film. “I felt like it was really dark so when I found out that they were making a version that is more kid-friendly and they were interested in me being a part of it, I jumped at the opportunity. And so, personally, I’m just really excited to be able to sing for y’all because I never get that opportunity in the first place,” said Donald Faison, laughing.
Bobby Moynihan and Vanessa Bayer provide the voices of the Tweedledee twins, although in this version of the story the twins have been renamed Tweedle Don’t and Tweedle Do. Moynihan was happy to join the animated series and to play one of Disney’s legacy characters.
“Tweedle Don’t is…he’s the safe one. He’s the one that tells you not to do things, while Tweedle Do is kind of the one who’s like, ‘Do it, do it! which I think in real life is possibly the complete opposite of me and Vanessa Bayer,” joked Moynihan. “It just seemed like fun to play. And I love Disney and I love Vanessa.”
“Alice is just so kind and one of the things that I think is her biggest superpower is she loves baking,” said Libby Rue, commenting on the series’ lead character. “And when she’s baking, she gets to cheer up her friends when they’re having a bad day and she gets to bake for all of Wonderland. And that makes her happy and it makes people around her happy. I think that’s such a great story for little kids because it tells you that when somebody’s having an off day, there’s always a way to cheer them up.”
Eden Espinosa, the series’ Queen of Hearts, was born in Anaheim and grew up spending lots of time at Disneyland. She even worked at the theme park, including a stint as the voice in the sky during the fireworks show.
“That created a lot of amazing opportunities with the Disney family. And now, diving into animation is such a dream come true for me. So to be able to collaborate with such a creative and amazing company is a blessing,” said Espinosa.
Asked if her experience playing Elphaba on Broadway helped her get into character as the Queen of Hearts, Espinosa replied, ”It definitely helps me tap into a different side of myself, but I think these two women in particular are very different. Elphaba really comes from a place of hurt and insecurity, and the Queen thinks very highly of herself.
So it’s actually fun to live that out, to really be like my biggest fan and to think that I’m amazing and everyone else should think I’m amazing. ‘Why don’t you think I’m amazing?’ That is so fun. So I don’t know if it prepared me, but I think playing both extremes and acting in that way is really a treat for anyone.”
Espinosa added: “I feel like these incarnations of these characters are more well-rounded and more human. They have a lot more sides to them. Especially, I feel, for the Queen. You see a lot more of her humanity and soft side and fun side, as well as, ‘Off with her head.’ But we don’t take anyone’s heads off.”
