The Naples Players summer musical is 'The Secret Garden'

COURTESY PHOTO A rehearsal shot from The Naples Players' summer musical, "The Secret Garden," shows Jordan Chestnut , Thomas Raleigh and Sydney Robicheaux, playing Yorkshire lad Dickon, invalid Colin Craven and orphan Mary Lennox. For its Naples summer musical extravaganza, The Naples Players brings to the stage "The Secret Garden," an enchanting, lyrical production based on the beloved novel by Frances Hodgson Burnett. The show, which has enthralled adults and children alike, won four Tony awards and three Drama Desk Awards.

"The Secret Garden" opens on the main stage of the Sugden Community Theatre in downtown Naples on June 27 for a five week run. The Naples Players production includes a cast of 30 and a full orchestra. The book and lyrics were written by Marsha Norman; the music is by Lucy Simon. Critics have written: "the music is gorgeous…and the show is a triumphant evening of entertainment for people of all ages."

The show tells the story of Mary Lennox, a lonely, headstrong little girl, orphaned by a cholera epidemic in India, who is sent to live in Misselthwaite Manor in Yorkshire, with her Uncle Archibald, who is still grieving over his bedridden son and the loss of his beloved wife, Lily. Archibald casts a dark shadow over the manor - until Mary discovers a secret garden that had once belonged to Lily, giving hope to a magical rebirth.

The cast includes a sprightly young man who can "talk" to animals, and many "Dreamers" - or ghosts from Mary and Archibald's pasts - who act as a Greek chorus of sorts, capturing the emotions and memories of the characters in this extraordinarily beautiful musical.

Tickets for "The Secret Garden" are on sale at The Naples Players Box Office and are selling rapidly. Also available for the summer is a return of the overwhelmingly popular dinner/ show package offered by The Naples Players and Vergina Restaurant. Beginning Saturday, June 28 and continuing Wednesday through Saturday evening until the last performance on August 2, the dinner/show package costs $48 per person. After enjoying a three course dinner at Vergina, the ticket holder simply strolls across 5th Avenue to the theatre to see a live performance of The Secret Garden. On Sundays, dinner is enjoyed after the 2 p.m. matinee,

Individual tickets for The Secret Garden cost $30 per adult, and $10 for children under 18. The show opens June 27 (opening night is sold out) and continues through Aug. 2, Wednesday through Saturday at 8 p.m. and 2 p.m. Sunday. There is no performance on July 4.

For reservations for the dinner/show package or for individual tickets for any performance, visit The Naples Players Box Office at 701 5th Avenue South in downtown Naples. The Box Office is open Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m, and two hours before curtain. Tickets also may be purchased by phone at (239) 263-7990 or on-line at www.naplesplayers.org