Theatre review: The Secret Garden at the Roman Theatre Festival

13 Jun 2024

Deborah Heath celebrates the achievements of the youngsters starring in the latest production from OVO Community Group…

I must start by saying how pleased I am that professional company OVO have not lost sight of their roots as a community theatre group.

This production of the Secret Garden, launching their new community ensemble initiative, gives talented local children the opportunity to perform alongside experienced OVO actors and under the guidance of directors Faith Turner and Janet Podd.

Last year, in The Railway Children, OVO began this tradition using children as background artists but in 2024 they have developed this opportunity to give children some really good roles.
The Secret Garden (pub. 1911) is a hugely uplifting story by Frances Hodgson Burnett about a 10 year old orphan Mary who goes to live with her uncle in his huge house on the Yorkshire Moors. Her uncle is physically disabled and suffering from depression after the death of his wife and has very little time for Mary.

She soon finds solace exploring the grounds and making friends with a robin who quickly opens up her world. Frances Hodgson Burnett, herself recently bereaved, wrote the story sitting in her own walled garden surrounded by nature and for OVO to take their telling of it one stage further by staging it in a natural open air space was really moving for the audience.

Mary is played with great power by 15-year-old Alice W. who displayed a talent that belied her age throughout. She was able to turn herself from being a spoilt brat to a bossy cousin to a thoughtful and sensitive young lady. Alongside her, Thomas B. (14) as local animal lover Dickon had a thoroughly convincing Yorkshire accent which never slipped – many actors I have watched over the years could learn from his example.

Noah S, (14) played Colin with the right balance of pity and humour – this is quite a hard role to pitch correctly but he did so brilliantly. All three lead children clearly had a professional and dedicated outlook which was a joy to behold.

However, they were fantastically supported by animal puppeteers Elena H and Elsie M who made the robin and dog feel completely lifelike. I loved the directorial decision for the puppeteers to react and respond as their animal and the way these young ladies executed it was impressive.

These young people were backed by a brilliant youth ensemble of supporting actors who were on stage and in character throughout – well done! It was a busy stage but never crowded because these children were able to establish the setting by turning themselves to anything from a gang of unpleasant taunting children to trees.

Those who had lines delivered them with clarity. What a wonderful opportunity for them all to hone their craft and I hope to see some of them in larger roles next year.

Although the focus was not on the adult actors, quite correctly because this is a child-centric story, I cannot complete this review without a few words about them. For some adults it is difficult to let the children shine whilst still commanding your role but every single one managed this successfully.

I particularly loved the playful portrayal of country sisters Martha and Mabel, played by Kate Cohen and Hayley Morson.

Musical direction under the talented Tom Cagnoni was pitched perfectly with folk songs sung onstage often in haunting harmony coupled with beautiful recorded background music.

The design and direction of this well-loved English story is beautiful. OVO used the whole available space including the auditorium (the key planted in the audience was a nice touch) and the use of the ensemble to move multi-functional props around the stage resulted in a seamless narrative.

I loved the small details such as the rabbit puppets and chickens on sticks, the latter really did capture the chaos of looking after chickens; a lovely touch! Keeping the ghost of Mary’s aunt onstage proved to be a powerful tool and I admire Yvonne Innes for lasting so long in a flimsy summer dress when the rest of us were wrapped up in layers!

The adaptation by Elizabeth Newman was successful overall, however the first half of Act I could have moved the story forward more quickly. The directors really brought out the themes of the story – loss, loneliness, friendship and above all, the power of nature. It was a moving experience for the audience for so many reasons including the portrayal of the powerful story and the hope that its young cast will go on to achieve great things. Well done!

All photos by Elliott Franks.