The Queen's Croquet Game

A chaotic game of croquet with live animals and cards, marked by the Queen's constant executions and the Cheshire Cat's mysterious appearances, tests Alice's courage and wit.

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Painting the Roses Red

A Rose-Tree of Deception The Gardeners' Mistake Alice enters the beautiful garden and finds a large rose-tree with white roses, but three gardeners are busily painting them red. Two, Five, and Seven explain that the Queen of Hearts demands red roses, and they planted a white one by mistake. If the Queen discovers the truth, they will all be beheaded. Alice sympathizes with them as they work frantically. The Queen's Arrival A cry of "The Queen! The Queen!" sends the gardeners flat on their faces. A grand procession enters, led by soldiers shaped like clubs, followed by courtiers, royal children, guests, and finally the King and Queen of Hearts. The Queen asks Alice who she is, and Alice, recognizing them as a pack of cards, answers boldly. She refuses to identify the gardeners, enraging the Queen, who screams "Off with her head!" Alice shouts "Nonsense!" and the King calms the Queen. The Queen orders the gardeners turned over and, seeing the painted roses, sentences them to beheading. Alice hides them in a flowerpot, saving them.

The Croquet Game Begins

A Game of Chaos The Rules of the Ground The Queen invites Alice to play croquet. The game is bizarre: the mallets are live flamingos, the balls are live hedgehogs, and the arches are soldiers doubled over. Alice struggles to manage her flamingo, which keeps twisting its neck to look at her. The hedgehog unrolls and crawls away, and the soldiers move about, changing the layout of the arches. The players all play at once, without waiting for turns, and the Queen shouts "Off with his head!" or "Off with her head!" every minute. Alice's Unease Alice feels very uneasy, knowing she could be the next target. She looks for a way to escape, but the Cheshire Cat appears, its head materializing in the air. Alice discusses the unfairness of the game with the Cat, careful not to offend the Queen, who is listening. The King of Hearts confronts the Cat, and the Queen orders its beheading, but the executioner cannot behead a head without a body. The Cat fades away, and the Duchess is summoned.

The Duchess's Release

A Moralizing Duchess The Duchess's Return The Duchess is brought from prison and is now in a pleasant temper, much to Alice's relief. She takes Alice's arm and walks with her, finding a moral in everything. She declares that love makes the world go round, and that taking care of the sense means the sounds will take care of themselves. Alice is amused by the Duchess's obsession with morals. The Queen's Threat The Queen appears and warns the Duchess to choose between her head or her head being off. The Duchess vanishes instantly. The Queen resumes the game, but the constant executions have reduced the number of players. The soldiers, who have to stop being arches to execute prisoners, have left the croquet-ground in ruins. Soon only Alice, the King, and the Queen remain. The Queen, out of breath, asks Alice if she has seen the Mock Turtle, and the scene shifts to the sea-shore.

at the entrance to the Queen's Croquet-Ground

after the procession, on the croquet-ground

during the croquet game