SYDNEY Opera House has the perfect production for school holidays, its own creation, “Mad Hatter’s Tea Party” – and it’s coming to Canberra.

It’s an insane, interactive take on a famous interlude in Lewis Carroll’s classic “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland”, in which director Mike Finch has put together what is essentially a circus/cabaret show full of larger-than-life characters, stupefying tricks and lively music.

For four days only, The Playhouse stage will be transformed into “Wonderland” with a traverse staging that allows young audience members to sit on stage up close to giant playing cards and mushrooms, with huge top hats dangling from the ceiling, all devised by designer Melanie Liertz.

It won’t quite be the “Alice” that the kids are used to and Alice is about the only person who isn’t at this party, but fear not, among the guests will be her friends the Cheshire Cat, the March Hare, the White Rabbit, and the Caterpillar.

“Everything is nonsense and nothing is what it isn’t,” say staff at the Canberra Theatre who, unable to resist a really bad pun, describe the show as a “tea-riffic party”.

Seasoned festival comedian Eloise Green plays the Mad Hatter, while precision juggler Daniel Gorski is the March Hare. Aerialist Marianna Joslin doubles as the Cheshire Cat and one of the Tweedles, while hand-balancer Casey Douglas plays the Caterpillar and the other Tweedle.

Those are the more or less normal characters. Going well beyond the normal are Alicia Rose Quinn as the Flamingo and ex-Circus Oz rope artist Stuart Christie who, as the Red Kween [sic], leads the finale into a state of “feverish delirium”.

It is bound to be, the company swears, “the stupidest tea-party ever.”

“Mad Hatter’s Tea Party”, The Playhouse, 11am & 2pm daily, July 12-15. Bookings to canberratheatrecentre.com.au or 6275 2700.