REVIEW: UFOC Caught up in the Spirit of the Secret Garden
The ones we’ve lost, if they’re the ones we’ve loved, never leave us – so long as we hold on to their love and keep their memories alive.
In Marsha Norman and Lucy Simon’s brilliant musical adaptation of Frances Hodgson Burnett’s classic story, The Secret Garden, the Dead play as integral and moving a part as any of the Living and the past permeates almost every scene as a constant reminder that though time may roll on, “all experience is an arch to travel through” and, as Tennyson’s Ulysses claimed, we are “a part of all we have met.”
The musical itself is one of the most surprising, poignant, and thought-provoking productions I’ve come across in years, filled with every-day characters dealing with loss in the midst of change and learning how to exist in the present and the future with the tragic past they’ve experienced.
The story begins with Mary Lennox who, having grown up in India, meets at the opening of the production with intense tragedy as her parents and all whom she has known are killed by cholera. Miraculously spared and having no other relatives, she is sent to live with her mother’s brother-in-law Archibald Craven who ten years before had met with similar tragedy in the death of his beloved wife Lily.
Left lonely and cheerless, Archibald and Mary are haunted by the ghosts of the past and fearful of the future. Archibald sees in Mary many things that remind him of his Lily, a feeling most aptly captured in the song, Lily’s Eyes, and runs to Paris in order to escape them.
Mary, having made friends with the plucky Martha and the indomitable nature-master Dickon, begins to enjoy her time at the lonely house on the hill and, with the help of a befriended robin, finds a key that opens a door which leads into a secret garden – Lily’s garden. At this same time, Mary discovers another secret in the Craven household – Colin. Sickly and pale, hardly ever having left the haunted villa, he believes he is going to die and has given up hope until Mary comes along.
As Mary, Colin, and finally Archibald come to Lily’s Garden, they are healed and released from the pain and sickness that had been cankering their bodies and their souls.
The Utah Festival Opera’s production, while not entirely flawless, was a stirring and exquisite rendition of this instant classic. With a bravura cast of both adult and young adult performers, it succeeded in rousing the emotions of the audience.
Dickon, played by young Kevin Massey, and Mary, played by the sprightly Beth Alison, stole the show in many of their duets and solo’s and Michael Ballam’s return to the stage as Archibald was a great success, though his particular interpretation of the character was different and less morose than I would have expected.
Ethan Devilbliss did a fine job in his portrayal of Colin Craven and is a good example of the talent that grows up along the Wasatch front. Having performed with UFO in past productions, we can expect to see some great things from him as he continues to develop his talents.
The supporting chorus, made up of characters from India and Yorkshire, drove the audience home with one of my favorite performances coming from the mystic Fakir, played by Sang-in Han,.
One of the chief complaints I had with the production however, was that it seemed too operatic. By this I mean that the characters at times seemed more concerned with Prima Dona interpretations and singing to the audience than in interacting with their fellow characters and adding their voices to a team-built whole. A forgivable fault to be sure, still it would have been nice to see a little more interface between the characters and a little more movement on the stage.
Still, my recommendation of this production comes without retraction. For all its faults, it was one of the greatest experiences I’ve had at the theatre this year.
For those who haven’t yet experienced this magnum opus, a treat is waiting for you at the Ellen Eccles theatre.