Director Ashlie Corcoran didn’t have to strain herself too hard to conjure up images of Yorkshire, England when she took the helm of Resurgence Theatre Company’s production of The Secret Garden.

After all, she had just returned to Canada after spending three months in the county that serves as the setting for the story.

“What was really inspiring for me was that I was actually living in Yorkshire and working with an opera company in Leeds from the end of March until the end of June,” Ms Corcoran said. “I really got to see Yorkshire for myself.”

The Secret Garden’s author, Frances Hodgson Burnett, made the culture and people of Northern England an integral part of the tale, Ms Corcoran said, so having an idea about what they were all about gave her a good foundation.

It made directing the play, itself, the Canadian premiere of a new adaptation by Dan Danson, a little more familiar.

The story features many familiar themes, such as compassion and people building meaningful connections with one another, Ms Corcoran said.

On one level, the story is about a young girl who discovers a hidden garden, while, on another, it is about a group of people who learn to live and love again.

It’s that kind of an element that really drew veteran actor Derek Boyes to perform in his first York Shakespeare Festival as the sullen and broken patriarch of Misselthwaite Manor, Lord Craven.

In some ways, Lord Craven is not unlike Alistair Sim’s take on Ebenezer Scrooge in the 1951 film version of A Christmas Carol, Mr. Boyes said, adding he loves the idea of bringing a character from misery to joy.

It really flips the concept of a tragedy on its head.

“To start at such a low point and then to take that and bring the character up to here is incredible,” Mr. Boyes said. “I love that as an actor.”

Mr. Boyes’ co-star and Resurgence senior theatre conservatory alumnus, Kevin Walker, agreed and added his character, Lord Craven’s son, Colin, undergoes a similar metamorphosis during the course of the story.

It seems fitting, perhaps, that both father and son go from broken to whole through the power of the garden.

In keeping with the garden theme, Resurgence has opted to return to putting on its shows beneath a tent this year, but audiences can still expect nature to play a starring role.

The tent only has three sides, so the play’s backdrop will be made up of trees, flowers, bushes, a stream and even the occasional duck.

Everyone on board seems to approve of the natural background and the excitement just continues to build for the 10th running of the festival, Resurgence’s general manager and co-founding member Anthony Leo said. Resurgence’s board wavered between holding the festival outdoors again or staging it in a tent and, in the end, the weather made the decision for everyone.

“It was quite a debate, but the rain factor led us to swing in that direction,” Mr. Leo said. “With it raining as much as it has, it really came down to practicality, but the tent does a really nice job of framing the natural background.”

The 2008 York Shakespeare Festival is on now at Fairy Lake Park and runs until Aug. 24. For more information on the plays, tickets and show times go to resurgence.ca, visit the Newmarket Theatre box office at 505 Pickering Cres. or call 905-953-2838.