Solanco High School, 585 Solanco Road, Quarryville, will present its spring musical, "The Secret Garden," on Thursday, March 2; Friday, March 3; and Saturday, March 4, at 7 p.m. Director John Biles hopes to explore a style of theater that is drastically different from last year's production of "Seussical," and the cast has been working hard to prepare for show time.

Since Biles first became involved with Solanco's theater program in 2018, he has made a concerted effort to explore a wide range of musical theater styles. This choice has allowed student actors to experience everything from contemporary theater to traditional theater to jukebox musicals. Biles' desire to explore new areas led to his decision to choose "The Secret Garden" for the spring 2023 musical, which will see the students tread new ground stylistically. "The Secret Garden," will use a heavier tone than past plays and is set in the early 20th century. "It's important to me that our audiences be exposed to a full complement of styles," said Biles. "It would be a shame to present a narrow style of musical."

"Incorporating a completely new dance style was certainly a large challenge. This is a type of dance that I have never done before," said Lydia Young, who plays Mary. "Although it is a wonderful learning experience, and I am thrilled to be involved in it."

With the exploration of new theatrical styles comes an array of new challenges. Due to the space restrictions of the auditorium, changing scenes and moving props is severely limited. The crew came up with a unique solution to change sets by having certain actors switch the scenes seamlessly, and removing the need for nearly every traditional blackout. Biles also noted that most of the wardrobe for the show is being rented from The Costume Shop at Millersville University, and he is excited for the audience to see the outfits come show time.

The musical is adapted from the 1911 novel of the same name, which follows the story of Mary Lennox, a young girl who goes to stay with her uncle after her parents die. At her uncle's home, Mary discovers a secret garden that hasn't bloomed in years, and she helps to bring it back to life The tale explores themes of grief, healing and hope. "The story is about overcoming extraordinary levels of grief. How do we overcome the emotional paralysis that can come with overwhelming grief?" said Biles. "It's a beautiful story of life, death and rebirth."

The cast has weathered many other challenges while preparing for the show; certain scenes are emotionally heavy and demand vulnerability from the actors. The emotional gravity of the play has required the actors to not only be vulnerable around their friends but prepare to be vulnerable before the audience. "I hope the audience connects with the emotions that the characters are feeling and leave feeling like they are really part of the story," said Young.

"We talk a lot as a cast about what it means to be courageous," said Biles. "This cast is fearless."

Tickets will be available to purchase at the door as well as online, and students and senior citizens will be offered a discounted ticket price. To purchase tickets online, visit https://tinyurl.com/solancosecretgarden.