The Glenwood Vaudeville Revue recently opened Marsha Norman and Lucy Simon’s “The Secret Garden” — its first musical in five years. This show, which has a runtime of two hours including intermission, tells the story of Mary Lennox (played in this production by Stella Rouse), who is sent to live with her reclusive and grief-stricken uncle, Archibald Craven (portrayed by Brit White), and his brother, Dr. Neville Craven (played by Vaudeville owner and director of the show, John Goss), after her family dies of cholera while stationed in British India.
In the director’s note of the playbill, Goss expresses his excitement for bringing such a production to the Vaudeville stage — a personal goal for the past three decades of his theater career.
“Our last big production, ‘Into the Woods,’ was cut short by COVID back in 2020, and it has taken this long to get the nerve to pull the trigger on another large production,” Goss wrote. “Fortunately, the pieces came together to take a chance, and I am so pleased with the final product. It took a while to figure out how to put this huge production on the Vaudeville stage, but little by little it came together.”
The show does, in fact, more than come together. The production utilizes the entire space, including walkways between the tables. However, there isn’t a seat in the building where you can miss the action on stage, creating a blend of classic and immersive theater. During dinner service before the show, audiences are treated to an exclusive behind-the-scenes peek into the process of getting the show up and running, as well as an informative series of video slides which offer a kind of dramaturgy about the history of the show, the meaning behind certain words that appear (such as “Ayah” to refer to Mary’s nanny during her time in India) and videos from cast members introducing their characters and expressing their excitement for being involved.
Mary’s new home seems to be haunted by ghosts of the past, including her late parents, Captain Albert Lennox (played by Travis McDiffett) and Rose Lennox (Frances Westhoff), and her aunt, Lily (Nattia Healy), and harbors secrets both within the walls and on the grounds where the gardens grow. Despite warnings from the housemaid, Mrs. Medlock (played by Lisa Langer) and her uncles, Mary’s curiosity keeps this story moving forward as everyone else comes to terms with burdens they’ve been carrying. Additionally, a chorus known as “The Dreamers,” portrayed by Robin Cotton Cobb, Frances Westhoff, Travis McDiffett, Shannon Provost, Jet Quealy and Travis Dean Wilson, helps move the story’s poignant moments forward.
The show keeps you hooked with fun, whimsical musical numbers as Mary navigates the loss of her family while seeking a sense of belonging in this unfamiliar place. She meets additional characters throughout the show, including Martha (played by Camden Newitt), Martha’s brother (played by Micha Schoepe), the groundskeeper (played by Bob Moore) and, eventually, a secret cousin. All meet her adventurous, determined and stubborn nature with encouragement and softness. The chemistry of the cast can be felt and even envied; it is apparent that while there was a lot of work behind the scenes of this production, the cast truly enjoys themselves on stage.
Despite the show’s charm, it moved me in ways I did not expect. Speaking strictly from my own experience, I saw a lot of characteristics in Mary that reminded me of me at her age (10). While I hold a lot of love and space for those traits, they were not always appreciated by those around me. Whether Mary or any of the other characters, there will be elements in the character all audiences can relate to.
In addition, the two child stars of the show, Rouse and Benjamin Poirier, gave it their all and seem to have bright futures in the world of performance ahead of them. Their ability to handle a classic tale opposite seasoned performers was deeply impressive, especially given the themes of unrequited love and jealousy, pain and loss, grief and fears about what happens to us when we die — none of which are often so bluntly stated in children’s media.
Although “The Secret Garden” has many supernatural elements, it is a deeply human story with the perfect ratio of trauma and humor to help theater-goers forget about the chaos of the world for a little while. Even down to the antagonistic characters, the story offers myriad lenses through which we can all learn something about the human condition, regardless of how unreasonable it may seem at the time of unfolding.
“The Secret Garden” continues through March 22. Tickets are available at www.gvrshow.com