Broadway in Annapolis: ‘The Secret Garden’ Coming to Maryland Hall for the Creative Arts

Annapolis gets a little Broadway treatment when Live Arts Maryland presents The Secret Garden on February 9-10 at 8 p.m. at Maryland Hall for the Creative Arts. Joining Music Director J. Ernest Green, the Annapolis Chorale and Annapolis Chamber Orchestra for this production is a stellar cast of guest artists, including Ryan De Ryke (Archibald), a popular performer from past seasons who returns to Live Arts Maryland this year. Also in the cast are Broadway performer Cody Williams (Dickon), who returns after last season’s “Oklahoma!,” along with many familiar faces from local stages, among them Lindsay Espinosa (Lily), Heather McMunigal (Rose), Jason Hentrich (Neville) and Duncan Hood (Ben). Appearing for the first time with Live Arts Maryland are Natalie Dixon as Mary Lennox and Conner Perry as Colin. Catrin Davies, also a performer in many Broadway in Annapolis productions, is the director of “The Secret Garden.”

Live Arts Maryland’s “Broadway in Annapolis” productions are a signature combination of beautiful staging and great singers performing with an orchestra and chorus. This mix allows the audience to hear the musicals and their composers intended, with a full orchestra – something rarely heard on New York stages. The combination of talented singers and musicians will create a very special experience for audiences.

With book and lyrics by Marsha Norman, music by Lucy Simon, and based on the novel of the same name by Frances Hogdson Burnett, The Secret Garden made its Broadway debut in 1991, winning several Tony Awards and Drama Desk Awards, including one of each for Daisy Eagan, the original Mary Lennox. The first production ran for 709 performances. The story of orphaned Mary, who is uprooted from India to Yorkshire, England, when her parents die in a cholera outbreak, quite literally blooms as she encounters her Uncle Archibald and cousin Colin and discovers the mysterious garden hidden on the estate. Such beautiful songs as “Lily’s Eyes,” “How Could I Ever Know,” “Come to my Garden” and “Come Spirit Come Charm” vividly tell the stories of the people in Mary’s new world and how she makes them bloom, too.

There are two opportunities to see The Secret Garden, Friday, February 9, and Saturday, February 10, both at 8 p.m. at Maryland Hall for the Creative Arts. Following each performance, J. Ernest Green will host a Q&A session for the audience with cast members. Live Arts Maryland offers free student rush tickets one hour before the concerts to all full-time students with a valid ID or those under 18 years of age. Tickets are $45 for adults, $12 for pre-paid students and are on sale now at the Maryland Hall Box Office at 410-280-5640 or www.marylandhall.org. There is a $5 per-ticket service charge for individual tickets. Group rates are available.

Live Arts Maryland is a non-profit arts organization that is passionate about making life in our community better by presenting high-quality music and providing music education for all ages. Live Arts Maryland’s performing ensembles include the Annapolis Chorale and Chamber Chorus, Cantori, a women’s ensemble, the Annapolis Chamber Orchestra and the Annapolis Youth Chorus. It is supported by the Maryland State Arts Council, the Arts Council of Anne Arundel County and the City of Annapolis.

Secret Garden Broadway in Annapolis

The Secret Garden is playing February 9th and 10th, 2018 at Maryland Hall for the Creative Arts- 801 Chase St, in Annapolis, MD. Tickets can be purchased online.

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