The following review was written by Michael Moore of the Kitsap Sun.

BREMERTON — This feedback is going to be partly about the feedback.

I think the Mountaineers Players have a fair-to-middlin’ production of “The Secret Garden” going on up at the Kitsap Forest Theater. At the July 28 performance I attended, though, there were more than the usual distractions that kept the charming story of the power of love from being as effective as it might’ve been under Craig Schieber’s warm yet efficient direction.

The show has plenty going for it, starting with impressive vocal performances by several of its leads, sterling accompaniment by keyboardist Greg Smith (the lone musician in music director Julia Thornton’s charge) and visual contributions from Barbara Klingberg (who designed both the splendid costumes and the minimal yet evocative set) to overcome those “usual” distractions — an atmosphere that is part stage play and part family picnic, with the ambient noise from young children and restless adults, the wind in the branches and the roar of airplanes from the nearby Bremerton Airport.

Throw in a sound system that was scratchier’n a new wool sweater, though, and things get a little dicier, as they did for the opening weekend’s Sunday matinee. Speakers buzzed and burped, microphones cut in and out ... With as modest a crowd as braved Sunday afternoon’s cool (which really wasn’t bad at all), they might’ve been better off ditching the mics and asking everyone just to slide on down to the front.

Once there, they would’ve found much to entertain and move them. Frances Hodgson Burnett’s beloved story, effectively adapted by librettist Marsha Norman and composer Lucy Simon, is treacle — but it’s well-done treacle that provides a number of opportunities for really good singers to show off.

Two Kitsap residents are among those who take the most advantage. Sara Henley-Hicks, making her first appearance at KFT, gives full, but just short of operatic, voice to ghostly Lily, while Eric Emans is also tremendous as conflicted Neville.

But Emans has to take a back seat for man of the match to the lovely tenor of Stephen Leigh Jones, who plays Neville’s even-more-conflicted brother, Archibald, who’s still grieving the loss of his wife by cutting himself off from anyone who reminds him of her.

Into the brothers’ unhappy home lands Mary Lennox, whose parents have been claimed by a cholera outbreak in their Indian outpost. Archibald is Mary’s uncle, but sees too much of his beloved Lily in the little girl’s face upon her arrival and soon exiles himself to his flat in Paris.

As Mary, 9-year-old Jasmine Harrick is whip-smart and feisty from the get-go, but gradually warms to the task of bringing love back to gloom-ridden, haunted Misselthwaite Manor. The youngest cast member is a fine singer and holds her own in the acting department, too. She also has extensive movement on her plate, part of the atmospheric choreography by Guy Caridi.

Mary’s posse at Misselthwaite includes chambermaid Martha and her brother, Dickon (Britt Boyd and Tristan Carruthers), Ben the gardner (Carl Olson) and Colin (Cymbeline Brody), who’s bedridden under Neville’s overprotective care. Both Olson and Brody are Kitsap products, and both add strong acting performances.

It all turns out well in the end, as you knew it would. But the joy in “The Secret Garden” is in the telling.

If you can hear it, you’ll like it.

Sarah Fairchild is thrilled to have the opportunity to bring Glinda, one of her favorite characters, to life – and to wear a really sparkly dress while doing so! She counts herself very lucky to get to wear what she thinks are some of the best costumes out at Kitsap Forest Theater – if you saw The Little Mermaid, you may remember her as Aquata, the very sassy pink mersister. She is ecstatic to return for a second time to her glittery summer home under the trees.

Sarah is a local lighting designer and actor. She has worked on lighting teams at 5th Ave, Balagan, SMT, Can Can, and Driftwood. She’s also been seen onstage most recently as Beth March in SMT’s Little Women and will be appearing next as Jane in KFT’s summer show Tarzan.

Here’s what she has to say about the enduring nature of this year’s production of The Wizard of Oz:

“When I was growing up, whenever something didn’t go my way or I didn’t try my very best, my mom used to quote The Wizard of Oz. She would tell me that I had the magic slippers on and all I needed was to figure out how to use them.

“I hated it. I thought it was trite and clichéd because gosh Mom, we don’t live in a fairy tale!

“But then I came to realize what she meant. That I – that we all – no matter how badly things seem to be going, can reach down and find the strength and the power within us. That we can use our own power, our talents, and our ability to try harder, to do what needs to be done, and to succeed in our endeavors.

“To me, this is the most enduring message of The Wizard of Oz. This message empowered me to not give up, and to continue to strive to get better despite sometimes seemingly insurmountable odds. Although Dorothy relies on the help of other characters throughout the show – as we all must do in real life – she is ultimately the one who has power over her own fate.

“The most magical moment of The Wizard of Oz is when Dorothy clicks her heels together and sends herself home. She has found the power within herself, and Glinda facilitates that for her. She doesn’t give her all of the answers, but she protects and shelters her, letting her adventure out on her own.

“I hope that everyone who watches this show is able to by empowered by Glinda’s message. You are strong, you are powerful, you have the magic slippers on – you just have to figure out how to use them.”

The Wizard of Oz opens May 28th. Get your tickets now and don't miss out on this heartwarming show.

Michael C. Moore , May 28, 2017

BREMERTON — There have been many Memorial Day weekends when umbrellas were an integral part of the Mountaineers' productions at Kitsap Forest Theater.

Most years, it was because it was raining.

For the 2017 spring offering, though, the bumbershoot played a huge role in the opening-day performance of the much-beloved musical "The Wizard of Oz," even though the day was every bit as idyllic as the al fresco venue could've hoped. Director Craig Schieber might not have been able to pull off this imaginative, judiciously contemporized version of Dorothy Gale's travels to and from the Emerald City without lots, and lots, andlotsandlots, of umbrellas.

(It should be noted that, even though nothing caught fire, extinguishers also made a star-level contribution. Ponder.)

It's not easy putting on a satisfactory "Wizard of Oz," let alone a superb one, and Schieber faced all the usual challenges of trying to bring a special effects-heavy show into the rustic amphitheater. And, as usual, he manages to get over, around and through most of the potential pitfalls by replicating the bells and whistles as best he can, keeping the performance floor a blur or color and motion and — mostly — just letting the story tell itself.

There's also the challenge of trying to please two completely different audiences. Some — like myself, who grew up watching the annual and much-anticipated telecasts of the 1939 movie version — are so familiar with the book and lyrics that you can see our lips moving. For us, a performance needs to live up to iconic images and generally be the stuff of our fond memories.

But there are also those in every audience who, for whatever reason — they're younger than 5, or spent their lives under a big rock — haven't caught up with this wonderful, timeless fantasy adventure. For them, it's Schieber's job to give them a first point of reference, a "Wizard of Oz" against which all others will be measured in future.

On most fronts, he succeeds. And he does so with a cleverly tricked-up visual aesthetic, which turns Munchkins and Winkies into computer game characters, modernized a crystal ball into a cell phone and an hourglass into a flat-screen monitor (albeit an insufficiently sized one).

There are also the tried and true Forest Theatre tricks of having people portray everything from furniture to foliage.

The look overall — with bouquets tossed to costumer Barbara Klingberg and choreographer Guy Caridi — is a close-enough chip off the old blocks to satisfy the life-long Ozniks, but colorful and whimsical enough — not to mention referentially modern — to grab and hold the attentions of first-timers, even the diaper-clad.

Much of the acting is cursory at best, as Schieber's huge cast was charged primarily with getting through the long, episodic proceedings without bogging down.

But there are some highlights, starting with a delightfully 2017-ish Dorothy delivered by Jasmine Harrick, who's theatrical throughout without being cloying, and makes worthy work of the show's best-known song, "Over the Rainbow." Her singing and dancing also help breathe life into the "Jitterbug" production number (don't look for that one in the movie) that I've always thought was a pain, but quite enjoyed in the forest.

Caridi scores points not only for thorough and fun choreography, but for his rubber-limbed performance as the Scarecrow. Along with Harrick's Dorothy, I think I liked him most of all.

What made the biggest impression on me was that the Mountaineers' "Wizard of Oz," with all its challenges, limitations and distractions (if you've been before, you know the family-friendly amphitheater is often part gallery, part nursery), held the attention of the large, sun-kissed crowd about as well as any show I've seen there.

As measures of success go, especially for a show as big as "The Wizard of Oz" and a venue as challenging as the Forest Theater, that's an important one.

http://www.kitsapsun.com/story/entertainment/2017/05/29/wizard-oz-delivers-when-can/352693001/