THE SECRET GARDEN

THE SECRET GARDEN is a wonderfully symbolic story about children finding love and happiness through their mutual delight in the magic of nature and in each other. Much of the novel is dialogue spoken in the broad dialect of Yorkshire. Actually, this regional language is so dynamic that it becomes itself a force for character change in the novel. As the two upper-class children open up, their stiff, upper-class speech deliberately changes to that of the relaxed musical country Yorkshire. The Irish Fitzgerald "sings" the dialects convincingly. Further, her young people sound perfectly their age and full of the excesses of children. Rather repetitive harp music opens and closes many of the scenes. Also, various canned sound effects, such as rain falling, sheep bleating and birds chirping are consistently present throughout the performance--most of them gratuitous and distracting. The production does refelect the full high fidelity now expected in this medium. P.W. ©AudioFile, Portland, Maine [Published: DEC 92]