The Secret Garden Experience Extends Into The Summer

After its first run this May half term, Wizard Presents have extended the availability of their Secret Garden Experience into this summer, before lauching their schools experience in the autumn term.

Following the storyline of Frances Hodgson Burnett's The Secret Garden, The Secret Garden Experience starts when a 'Secret Box' arrives in the post. Each box contains eight envelopes with eight unique audio episodes and accompanying activities., but it is totally up to you how you enjoy it - both who you enjoy it with (on your own, with family, friends, in person or online), and how often you open a new envelope (daily, every other day, weekly, whatever works for you), and even where (at home, on holiday, in a park or garden). This is your special experience for you to enjoy however you like.

Activities include games, crafts, augmented reality, digital content, things to do indoors, things to do outdoors. Serialised audio episodes of the story guide the journey, with soundscape and original music composed by Arun Ghosh, immersing audiences in the well-loved story of 10 year old Mary Lennox leaving India and coming to the UK to live with her uncle on the Yorkshire moors. It all begins when you find the first secret key...

Additionally 2 lucky families will find an extra golden key in their box, to receive an extra prize - either family tickets to the panto at Watford Palace Theatre, or a hamper of Secret Garden goodies.

An accompanying In Conversation series for adults features Danyah Miller speaking to special guests about The Secret Garden and its key themes, to delve deeper into some of the issues raised in the story that are effecting society today. The free series starts with a live webinar with the Clinical Director of the Bereavement Charity Cruse, Andy Langford, on 24 June. Each conversation with a different guest will then be released weekly on Wizard Presents' social channels until 5 August. These guests include Frances Hodgson Burnett's biographer, Ann Thwaite, actor, journalist and satirist, Heydon Prowse, who played Colin in the 1992 film of The Secret Garden, and Storyteller and Anthrologist Gauri Raje, The whole series will then be available on The Secret Garden Experience website from early August.

The Secret Garden Experience for Schools. suitable for Key Stage 1 and 2, is available to order for Autumn term 2021. Accompanying the audio episodes, special online content and a Secret Box created specifically for a schools environment, is an education resource pack (created by teaching consultant Mo Serby and Associate Director at Watford Palace Theatre, James Williams-) The pack contains everything needed to plan 8 lessons or more and activities can be adapted to suit indoor or outdoor teaching, suit a variety of class sizes up to 30.

Artistic director Danyah Miller said, "We're thrilled that the project has been so well-received and that audiences of all ages are rediscovering the joys of this hugely relevant story. We're delighted that we're now able to offer it to schools to compliment the Key stage 1 and 2 curriculum."

Wizard Presents created the Secret Garden Experience in response to the pandemic cutting short their theatrical tour of the show in 2020, finding a new way to share the story. The company creates inspiring and compelling productions for all ages. Previously they have produced Pippi Longstocking - The Swashbuckling Musical Adventure, a co-production with Royal and Derngate Northampton, ABA International Touring (UK) and York Theatre Royal. Soul Sister (Hackney Empire and Savoy Theatre) was nominated for an Olivier Award for Best New Musical 2013. John Miller was also nominated for an Olivier Award for Only the Lonely - The Roy Orbison Story, which he co-wrote. I Believe in Unicorns by Michael Morpurgo, in association with Royal & Derngate Northampton and Watford Palace Theatre (Edinburgh Fringe 2013, West End and UK tours) received an Argus Angel Award for Artistic Excellence at Brighton Festival 2014 and an Audience Choice Award for Get Creative Family Arts Festival in 2015. Why the Whales Came by Michael Morpurgo, in association with Watford Palace Theatre, was on tour throughout 2016 and 2017. Perfectly Imperfect Women, written by Danyah Miller, supported by OvalHouse (Edinburgh Fringe 2017 and UK tour) was ranked 6th top rated show in The List Magazine Edinburgh. Kika's Birthday, written by John and Danyah Miller, a co-production with Little Angel Theatre and Orange Tree Theatre (Edinburgh Fringe 2018 and UK tour) was named in The Guardian's Best of the Fringe and awarded the Runner Up prize in the prestigious Primary Times Children's Choice Awards. Meet Astrid Lindgren's Pippi Longstocking, commissioned by Oxford University Press to celebrate the 75th anniversary of Astrid Lindgren's books, opened at the Imagine Children's Festival 2020 (Southbank Centre) before a UK tour.

Each episode is 25mins long, across eight episodes.

Learn more at https://www.watfordpalacetheatre.co.uk/whats-on/digital/the-secret-garden-experience/.

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