The Joffrey Ballet’s season rarely extends this far into summer, but it’s safe to say “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland” was worth the wait. This beast of a ballet by the Tony Award-winning choreographer Christopher Wheeldon had its North American premiere at the Lyric Opera House on Thursday.

If, like for me, Lewis Carroll’s 1865 fairy tale about a girl who stumbles into Wonderland is a core memory, all those beloved characters are there, with a splendidly cogent (and at times delightfully grotesque) libretto. It’s more Tim Burton than Disney, but you’ll recognize moments no matter your preferred version (including my personal favorite, the 1985 TV movie musical starring Jayne Meadows and Carol Channing).

Following a drowse-inducing garden party at her Victorian Oxford estate, Alice (ma

See Full Page