Overview

Synopsis

Frances Hodgson Burnett’s beloved victorian classic, The Secret Garden, blossoms anew in this enchanting musical by Pulitzer Prize-winner Marsha Norman and Lucy Simon. When young Mary Lennox loses her parents to a cholera outbreak in India, she is sent to live with her uncle, hermit Archibald Craven, who lives in an imposing, secluded manor on the British heath. Inside the haunting house upon the hill, Mary finds a reclusive, long-suffering collection of souls. Since her aunt Lily’s death, Mary’s uncle has pushed away his surviving loved ones, leaving his bedridden son, Colin, alone. Sickly Colin, hidden away in the depths of the manner, bears the guilt of his mother’s death on his crippled shoulders. When Mary discovers her Aunt Lily’s hidden garden, locked shot and overgrown with vines, stubborn Mary is determined to revive the beauty that once was. Surrounded by spirits from the past, who both warn and welcome her, determined Mary begins to peel away the layers of sadness that cover the house and the garden, showing us the power that “one small girl” can have when she “wants things to grow.”

Show Information

Music
Lucy Simon
Based on the Play/Book/Film
Based on the book
Category
Musical
Age Guidance
Youth (Y)/General Audiences (G)
Number of Acts
2
First Produced
1991
Genres
Drama
Settings
Multiple Settings
Time & Place
1906, colonial india and misselthwaite manor in north yorkshire, england.
Cast Size
large
Orchestra Size
Large
Dancing
Optional
Licensor
Samuel French
Ideal For
Community Theatre, High School, Large Cast, Professional Theatre, Regional Theatre, Star Vehicle Female, Star Vehicle Male, Theatre For Young Audiences (TYA), Mostly Male Cast, Includes Child, Early Teen, Adult, Young Adult, Late Teen, Mature Adult Characters