YOU WOULD think that a whole clutch of ballet Alices wouldbe circulating. The title is familiar; children and adults can delightin Lewis Carroll's surreal characters; there is even a score, written byJoseph Horovitz for the English National Ballet's first Alice in 1953.Yet while we have Romeo and Juliets coming out of our ears, the same company'sDerek Deane is one of only a handful of choreographers to have given Alicea go.

Why has Deane ditched Horovitz? Perhaps through a belt-and-bracesdesire to add yet another box-office-friendly name - Tchaikovsky - to thecredits. Yet Horovitz's music has a unity not shared by the substitutionof Tchaikovsky pieces put through the infernal Carl Davis rendering machine.But never mind, Deane's Alice, created in 1995 and on the road again, clearlypleased the audience who had the distinction of being in Oxford, home ofLewis Carroll.

ENB's Alice Crawford not only has the name, but the physiqueand the manner - tiny porcelain body, prettily precise feet, sweetnessmixed with spirit. The headband, blue dress and apron make her instantlyknowable, which does not always happen with the multitude of other characters,designed by Sue Blane, if your Carroll is a bit rusty. Nathan Coppen wasclearly the Knave of Hearts, who dances a pas de deux with Daria Klimentovaas an adult Alice - a neat Deane device to introduce a touch of romance.I could identify Yat Sen Chang's busy White Rabbit and Michael Coleman'sDuchess, but the Cheshire Cat (Felipe Diaz) was an unprepossessingly mangybeast, recognised only from the smile projected at the back, while theFish Footmen and Lobsters passed me by.

Part of the problem is Deane's choreography, which shouldmake the most of what is necessarily a succession of cameos. Yes, the choreographydoes try to give the characters their signature styles, but none of itis sharp or witty enough. The Caterpillar convolutes his body unctuously;the March Hare and Mad Hatter rush and bump into each other. The air turnselectric as Tamara Rojo's Queen makes her dramatic playing-card entrance(illusions are by Paul Kieve) and strides about with angry pointing gestures.But they are all soon defeated by movement which appears trite and over-extended.

From the evidence around me, I wasn't the only one programme-peeringin the dark, in a vain attempt to identify characters. Let's not strainour eyes, let's have surtitles - or at least a few more hints on stage.But the younger spectators were certainly more on the ball, able to noticethat there was no Walrus, as an otherwise thrilled little boy informedme on the way out.

Touring to 18 March