Soundstage Productions presenting The Secret Garden
Soundstage Productions is bringing a musical and literary classic to life for their upcoming annual performance.
Director Lynne Leydier has a lovingly-difficult yearly ritual of deciding which production to put on the Penticton Lakeside Resort’s stage.
This year she landed on “The Secret Garden,” the 1989 musical based on the 1911 novel of the same name by Frances Hodgson Burnett.
The story is set in the early 20th century, following Mary Lennox, an English girl raised in British-controlled India who is orphaned at 10-years-old and sent to Yorkshire to live with relatives she has never met. She and a young gardener join together to bring a neglected patch of ground to life.
“This story, when my daughter was young, it changed her life. She just loved the character, Mary Lennox, and the way that she coped with her particular problems and how her life was transformed through nature and a garden ... so that was pretty cool,” Leydier said. “I like historical pieces and a played through the score and I thought it was pretty fabulous.”
There are many renditions of “The Secret Garden” from stage to film, all taking different parts from the original novel. The production is making a Broadway resurgence recently as well, Leydier said, which she admits is good timing.
“As far as musicals go, this is pretty spectacular, dramatic, big music on a large scale. We’ve got a full orchestra and have added musicians this year. It’s going to be pretty strong,” Leydier said.
A vocal music student of Leydier’s, 11-year-old Maya Lefebvre, is taking on the lead role of Mary Lennox. Lefebvre won a gold medal for her voice exam this past summer.
“Her musicianship is strong, Andreas Nordlund (as Colin Craven) is a Grade 6 level piano and these kids have strong musical backgrounds which makes them equipped to handle the level because it’s a difficult show,” Leydier said. “You can’t just come off the street, even if you have a good voice, you still have to deal with timing. There’s a lot of musical challenges that are specific for something like this that these kids are able to handle because of their background.”
“The Secret Garden” is a return to a story-driven, spectacle production for Leydier, who has put on Broadway musical variety show’s the past two years.
She breathed a sigh of relief when asked how it feels returning to this type of production. She liked putting on the variety shows, with the ability to incorporate so many different styles into one performance, but is enjoying returning to a narrative format.
“I like having to deal with a story and a character. That’s really cool. When you have a theme and a trajectory, it helps focus yourself and everyone involved in it. There’s a lot of meat there you can sink your teeth into. It’s a totally different head space, a different kind of challenge,” Leydier said.
The Secret Garden is currently in rehearsals debuting on Jan. 24 at 7 p.m. at the Penticton Lakeside Resort. The show runs from Jan. 24 to Jan. 27 at 7 p.m. with a 1 p.m. matinee on the 27th. Tickets are $45 and available at the Lakeside Resort.
The cast includes Christine Robinson as Lily, Maya Lefebvre as Mary Lennox, Andreas Nordlund as Colin Craven, Derek Beaton as Archibald Craven, Dustin McGifford as Dr. Neville Craven, Ashley Surowski as Martha, Josh Richardson as Dikon, Mia Harris as Rose Lennox, Dave Ramey as Captain Albert Lennox, Bruce Martel as Ben, Alex Holzhaus as Fakir, Anne Ramey as Aya, Adrienne Penner as Claire, Tiana Ferlizza as Alice, Tyler Evans as Lieutenant Wright, Lee Abel as Lieutenant Shaw, Cal Meiklejohn as Major Holmes, Beth Scott as Mrs. Medlock and Michelle Younie as Mrs. Winthrop.
Francis Dellosa, Brian Hesje, Nila Gaudiuso, Helena Mott, Catherine Critchlow, Keira Louw, Kaitlyn Turley, Selina Spence and Lee Taylor make up the ensemble.
The orchestra includes Dennis Nordlund on keyboards, Sandy Andres on strings, Leslie Cryderman on brass and woodwinds, Misty Knol on flute and recorders, Tavis Weir on guitar, Stefan Bienz on bass and Scott Gamble on percussion.
The show features choreography by Eve Noonan, Kerry Younie in the costume department, Mary Fry on set and props and Anne Rabbitte, Debbie Graham, Susan Selles and Michou Szabo working backstage.