Show guide
The Secret Garden
The Secret Garden is a tender, atmospheric musical drama about grief, healing, and the quiet magic of a neglected garden brought back to life.
- Broadway premiere
- 1991
- Music by
- Lucy Simon
- Genre
- Drama
- Setting
- 1900s
The Secret Garden: quick answers
What is The Secret Garden about?
- Orphaned by a cholera outbreak in India, 10-year-old Mary Lennox is sent to her grieving uncle's manor in Yorkshire, where she finds a neglected walled garden. Bringing it back to life helps heal her, her bedridden cousin Colin, and her uncle.
When did The Secret Garden open on Broadway?
- The Secret Garden opened on Broadway on April 25, 1991, at the St. James Theatre and closed on January 3, 1993, after 709 performances. It won three Tony Awards, including Best Book for Marsha Norman and Best Featured Actress for 11-year-old Daisy Eagan.
What kind of musical is The Secret Garden?
- It is a dramatic book musical with an original score by Lucy Simon (music) and Marsha Norman (book and lyrics), adapted from Frances Hodgson Burnett's 1911 novel. Ghosts from the characters' pasts sing throughout the story.
Where and when is The Secret Garden set?
- The Secret Garden begins in British India and moves to Misselthwaite Manor on the Yorkshire moors in England, in the early years of the 20th century.
Has The Secret Garden played in London's West End?
- A Royal Shakespeare Company production opened in Stratford-upon-Avon in late 2000 and transferred to London's Aldwych Theatre from February to June 2001.
Is there a The Secret Garden movie?
- Burnett's novel, the musical's source, has been adapted for film several times, including MGM's 1949 version with Margaret O'Brien, Agnieszka Holland's 1993 film, and a 2020 film with Colin Firth and Julie Walters.
The story of The Secret Garden
Set in England around the turn of the twentieth century, the musical follows Mary Lennox, a young girl orphaned and sent to live at her reclusive uncle's isolated estate. There she discovers a walled garden that has been shut away since a family tragedy, and as she works to restore it, she helps heal the wounded relationships within the household around her.
The story is as much about the living as it is about those who have been lost, with memory and grief hovering over the household even as Mary's curiosity and persistence slowly bring warmth back into a home that had grown cold. Its atmosphere is gentle and often melancholy, balancing sorrow with hope.
The music and the makers
Lucy Simon composed the score, bringing a lyrical, folk-influenced sensibility to a musical rooted in drama rather than spectacle. The songwriting favors emotional nuance and character-driven storytelling, giving voice to grief, memory, and gradual healing.
As a drama, the score is more intimate than showy, built around flowing melodic lines and haunting harmonies that reflect the show's themes of loss and quiet transformation rather than big theatrical set pieces.
The Secret Garden on Broadway
The Secret Garden opened on Broadway in 1991, offering audiences a more introspective and literary alternative to the large-scale spectacles that dominated the era. Its emotional depth and delicate storytelling set it apart from splashier contemporaries.
The show has earned a devoted following among fans of musical drama, admired for its thoughtful adaptation of a beloved literary classic and for the way its score captures grief and renewal with unusual sensitivity.
The Secret Garden: frequently asked questions
When did The Secret Garden open on Broadway?
The Secret Garden opened on Broadway in 1991.
Who composed The Secret Garden?
Lucy Simon composed the score.
What is The Secret Garden about?
It follows orphaned Mary Lennox as she uncovers a hidden garden at her uncle's estate and helps heal her grieving family in the process.
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