The Chalk Garden

• by Enid Bagnold
• Directed by Laura Graham

Family drama and wit meet in this exploration of the secret world of childhood through the prism of a dyed-in-the-wool dowager, her precocious and equally eccentric granddaughter, and the enigmatic new governess.

Mrs. St. Maugham lives in her country house in a village in Sussex, where the garden is composed of lime and chalk. She is taking care of her teenage grandchild, Laurel, who has been setting fires. Miss Madrigal, an expert gardener, is hired as a governess, despite her lack of references. Also in the household is a valet, Maitland, who has just been released from a five-year sentence in prison. Olivia, Laurel’s mother, who has remarried, arrives for a visit. When the Judge comes to the house for lunch, he reveals that he had sentenced Miss Madrigal to jail for murder.

When The Chalk Garden was revived in London in 2008, critics called it a “neglected stage masterpiece” and praised Bagnold’s writing as “extravagantly eloquent”, “irresistibly vivid” and “hauntingly beautiful”. Bagnold is also the author of the much-loved novel National Velvet.

Production Dates:

• Friday and Saturday, March 3rd and 4th, 7:30 pm
• Sunday March 5th, 2:00 pm matinee
• Friday and Saturday,March 10th and 11th, 7:30 pm
• Sunday. March 12th, 2:00 pm matinee