Alice set for new Beijing adventure

Alice: Curiouser and Curiouser is "one of the most ambitious exhibitions ever staged by the V&A and the first to offer a virtual reality experience", said Tristram Hunt, director of the Victoria and Albert Museum, in a video speech at the exhibition opening on Feb 27.

He says the exhibits span film, fine arts, performance, fashion, music and photography, and present the adaptations and reinventions of Alice's stories, and that the exhibition provides an immersive experience for both children and adults to enter "an enchanting and extraordinary world of wonderland".

The exhibition begins with an introduction of the social context that inspired the birth of Alice's stories. Drawing on his interests in mathematics, music and the social scene of the time, Carroll's work addresses cultural issues, social mentality and science in the 19th century, reflecting the dramatic changes of the industrial age.

Visitors will get to see photos of the real Alice-Alice Liddell, a daughter of Carroll's dean at Christ Church, Oxford University. She asked Carroll to write down a story he told, based on which he developed Alice's Adventures in Wonderland.