MainStreet Theatre Company to Start 2017 with THE SECRET GARDEN

MainStreet Theatre Company begins the New Year with a stage adaptation of The Secret Garden, the beloved 1911 book by Frances Hodgson Burnet. The award- winning adaptation stays true to the original novel, whichhas been inspiring and delighting generations of children for over 100 years.

The production will play school performances beginning on January 24th, and open to the public on Saturday, January 28th at 4pm. The strictly limited engagement, geared for everyone aged 7 and up, will run through Sunday, February 12 only. Jessica Kubzansky is the Director.

The play, adapted by Pamela Sterling, follows the lonely and willful orphan Mary Lennox, as she is taken from her home in Colonial India to live with her reclusive uncle in the Yorkshire Moors. There, with the help of her maid Martha, Martha's brother Dickon and a robin, she discovers a garden that changes her life, and that of those around her.

The first-rate cast of Los Angeles based Equity actors includes Shannon Lee Clair as Mary, as well as Taylor Jackson Ross (Martha), Andrew Joseph Perez (Dickon), Marc Cardiff (Ben Weatherstaff), Doug Harvey(Colin) and Eileen T'Kaye (Mrs. Medlock). Richard Gallegos will portray both Archibald Craven and his cousin, Dr. Craven, and Max Lawrence will portray the Robin (a puppet).

MainStreet is delighted to welcome back award-winning director Jessica Kubzansky, who previously directed Anne of Green Gables, The Phantom Tollbooth, and Stiles & Drewe's The Three Little Pigs for the company. Ms. Kubzansky directs across the country as well as in the Los Angeles area, and is Co-Artist Director of Theatre @ Boston Court in Pasadena.

The production will stay true to the novel with attention paid to the dialect as well as the period in which it's set. The Design, with scenery by Susan Gratch and lighting by Jaymi Lee Smith, will take the audience from the heat of Colonial India to inside the gloomy manor house, to the starkness and beauty of the Yorkshire Moors, and finally, to Mary's garden, which will blossom with the help of some theatre magic. Victorian era costumes are by Tina Haatainen Jones. Michelle Zamora, who won an Ovation Honors award for her puppets for MainStreet's The Magic Finger, will be creating the Robin, and John Nobori will provide atmosphere with his original score and sound design.

The Secret Garden will have performances on weekends for family audiences (Saturdays at 1pm and 4pm and Sundays at 1pm, except for opening weekend when there is only one performance on Saturday, January 28th at 4pm), and on weekday mornings for school groups, through February 12th.

During the run of The Secret Garden, families will have the opportunity to get their own hands dirty, with some pre-show gardening activities provided by Plant Traders Inland Empire Ca Garden and Harvest Trading Community. There will also be the traditional lobby displays, and children can meet the cast in the lobby for autographs after the show. There will also be a short "talk-back" after the performance on Sunday, February 5th.

For more information, including special family discounts and the Study Guide for teachers and parents, visit the Lewis Family Playhouse's website:www.lewisfamilyplayhouse.com. Tickets can also be purchased over the phone or in person at The Playhouse Box Office: 909-477-2752. The box office is open Monday through Friday from noon to 6pm and Saturday from 10am to 6pm.

The Lewis Family Playhouse, an intimate 550-seat venue, is located in the 89,000-square-foot Victoria Gardens Cultural Center. The complex is located off the I?15 at Foothill Boulevard, at 12505 Cultural Center Drive in Rancho Cucamonga. Free Parking is available.

MainStreet Theatre Company, included in American Theatre Magazine's 2016 list of "20 Theatres you should take your kids to", is the resident Equity Company at the Lewis Family Playhouse, producing innovative plays and musicals for the whole family.

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