Exclusive Interview: Director David Armstrong Talks Revising, New Songs, and Broadway Plans for TUTS' THE SECRET GARDEN

BroadwayWorld had a chance to speak to David Armstrong, the director of THE SECRET GARDEN, currently on stage at Theatre Under The Stars in Houston!

Check out the Q&A below, and check out exclusive photos of the production here!

What was your approach for staging a brand new staging of The Secret Garden?

The design team and I were inspired by the gothic aspects of the original novel. Frances Hodgson Burnett was consciously echoing Wuthering Heights, Jane Eyre and other gothic stories. In all of those tales a young woman, in this case a girl, is thrust into a dark, scary mansion where secrets lurk behind every door and where there is a brooding, romantic tortured man that she must save. It is all, of course, a metaphor for how we must all confront our fears and overcome darkness in order to heal, evolve and grow. We have designed and staged the show to emphasize those elements and themes. "Healing our inner child" is a popular therapeutic technique in modern psychology. FHB was way ahead of us in that regard. You could say she wrote the book on it over 100 years ago.

What type of direction or creative changes have you done?

Marsha Norman and Lucy Simon felt strongly that they could tell the story more efficiently than they did in the original production and they have done a masterful job of streamlining the book and score without losing any of the impact. In addition to numerous small revisions and edits they also created a beautiful new song for Archie called "The Man In The Moon".

Why revisit The Secret Garden Now?

The story is timeless and its popularity has even grown over the decades and has spread around the world. There have been numerous film versions, theatrical adaptations and recently a multi part Japanese anime series.

It's story of redemption and regeneration feels particularly relevant right now especially in our fractured political and social climate, and at a time when so many people are trying to rebuild their lives after facing life altering adversity. I also think what audiences most want and need is to feel something - to have a cathartic, emotional response and this musical delivers that in spades. How often do we cry with joy? Every performance of The Secret Garden elicits that response from a vast majority of the audience.

What are the hopes for this production following the TUTS run? Are there Broadway aspirations? How far along in the process are you in that regard?

Following the success and acclaim of this production at Shakespeare Theater Company in DC and The 5th Avenue Theatre in Seattle and team of producers began planning to move the show to Broadway. That work continues as they analyze the perfect timing the mount the show in New York. In the meantime we are thrilled that Theatre Under The Stars has partnered with us to share this beautiful and moving musical with audiences here in Houston.

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THE SECRET GARDEN runs October 10, through October 22 in Sarofim Hall at the Hobby Center for the Performing Arts kicking off TUTS 2017-18 Season, will be directed and choreographed by David Armstrong. David Armstrong has served the Executive Producer and Artistic Director of the 5th Avenue Theatre in Seattle since 2000. He has directed many productions at 5th Avenue including SWEENEY TODD, HELLO DOLLY!, COMPANY, and ANYTHING GOES.

Rick Fox is serving as the Music Director/Supervision/New Arrangements for the production. He has worked as a Musical Director, Conductor, and Supervisor on more than 100 productions including CANDIDE, SWEENEY TODD, and HELLO, DOLLY!. Craig Baldwin is the Assistant Director and Trina Mills is the Assistant Choreographer on the production. Baldwin has worked on productions at regional theaters across the country including Lincoln Center Theatre, Roundabout Theatre Company, and 5th Avenue; and is currently the Artistic Associate at Shakespeare Theatre Company in DC. Mills has worked on numerous productions including THE SOUND OF MUSIC, ASSASSINS, and SWEENEY TODD.

The production features scenic design by Anna Louizos, costume design by Ann Hould-Ward, lighting design by Mike Baldassari, and sound design by Justin Stasiw. Louizos has designed sets for many Broadway productions including IN THE HEIGHTS, HIGH FIDELITY, and THE MYSTERY OF EDWIN DROOD all of which garnered her Tony nominations. Hould-Ward is a renowned costume designer having created costumes for Broadway productions including THE COLOR PURPLE, BEAUTY AND THE BEAST, for which she received a Tony Award, and INTO THE WOODS. She recently revisited her work on the latter when she reimagined several pieces for TUTS' 2016 production of INTO THE WOODS. Baldassari is a Tony-and-Emmy-nominated lighting designer whose work has been seen on film, television, and on Broadway. His body of work includes the movie musicals, NINE and ROCK OF AGES, and his work on Broadway includes the revival of CABARET. Stasiw has served as the Associate Sound Designer on numerous Broadway productions including ANASTASIA, MOTOWN THE MUSICAL, and SOMETHING ROTTEN!

THEATRE UNDER THE STARS ("TUTS") - (Dan Knechtges, Artistic Director; Hillary J Hart, Executive Director) - was founded by Frank M. Young in 1968 and is Houston's leading musical theatre company for performance, arts education and professional theatrical training; ranging from the classics to new work development. As a 501c3 performing arts organization, TUTS is dedicated to breaking down barriers to access by focusing on inclusivity, education, and community engagement through a commitment to artistic excellence, programs in the community, technique-based curriculum at the Humphreys School of Musical Theatre, and explorative, creative life-skills at The River Performing and Visual Arts Center. For more information, visit www.tuts.com.