This weekend, OperaBend presents “The Secret Garden,” the tale of two grieving children who find connection and healing at an otherwise dreary and literally haunted English estate, to which — eventually — the two bring new color, life and hope.

Despite the name of the producing company, the show is technically a musical, notes director Jason Stein, who does double duty by also starring in a major role.

“It’s really not an opera; it’s a musical, if you define opera as completely sung-through,” Stein said. “When Nancy (Engebretson, artistic director and ensemble member) and I were deciding which musical to do, I thought, I’ve always wanted to do ‘Secret Garden.’”

The family-friendly musical is based on an early 20th century novel titled “The Secret Garden,” by Frances Hodgson Burnett, and debuted on Broadway in 1991. Lucy Simon — sister of singer-songwriter Carly Simon, notes Stein — wrote the music, while Marsha Norman wrote the book and lyrics. The initial production starred Mandy Patinkin, and young star Daisy Eagan earned herself a Tony, one of a few netted by the show.

“When I saw it in the early ’90s, they were all amazing,” Stein said of the cast. “This is one of those shows, like, ‘Les Miz,’ that folks just love. … I knew at one point or another, I was going to do the show. It was just a matter of when.”

Fortunately, that time is now. Michelle Mejaski provided the choreography, and Michael Gesme will conduct the 22-member orchestra that will be on hand at Redmond performances Friday and Saturday. (Sunday’s Madras stop will make use of electronic accompaniment.)

The roles of the principal characters are double cast: Actresses Katey James and Emma Morton will alternate as Mary Lennox, who, after a cholera outbreak in India that takes the lives of her parents, is sent to live with relatives at an English estate, home to her widower uncle, Archibald “Archie” Craven (Stein), and a number of other characters living and not.

The specter of death looms over the gloomy home. Though years have passed since the death of his wife, Lily (Cristine Keever), Archie continues to mourn, so much so he’s largely defined by his grief. Lily, along with the ghosts of Mary’s parents, Albert and Rose, make up a kind of Greek chorus in the show. Her parents — or rather, their ghosts — are played by two of the show’s four singer-actors hailing from beyond Central Oregon: David Gustafson, of Eugene, and Jocelyn Claire Thomas, of Portland.

Every show must have some sort of conflict or villain, and here, that duty falls upon Dr. Neville Craven (Zachary Lenox, of Portland). He’s the brother of Archie, who is given to prolonged absences and isn’t entirely present emotionally when he is around.

But there are signs of life around the estate. For one, the upbeat character of Martha (Deborah Mae Hill, of Salem), who is maid to Mary. Mary spends a restless first night in the manor, where she hears crying of unknown origin. The next day, Martha urges her to get outside, to explore the grounds and maze-like Victorian gardens.

In the process, Mary finds the titular secret garden, neglected since the death of Lily, and meets the two gardeners, Ben (Rich Doyle) and Dickon (Eric McGinnis). Dickon, brother of Martha, is superstitious — but fun superstitious, as in communes with animals.

We haven’t yet mentioned the other double-cast role, that of Colin, source of the crying Mary’s heard in the night. That’s because Colin — alternately portrayed by Gavin Felciano and Jacob Michael — has been sequestered since his birth, during which his mother, Lily, lost her life.

The children bond and, no spoiler here, help to bring a sort of spring renewal to the manor and gardens.

“That’s the allure here,” Stein said. “It’s very much about hope, and you get that — the music, the words, and hopefully, it will really reach the audience nicely.”

He explained his reasoning for double-casting the principle children’s roles.

“These are huge roles,” he said. “Mary basically carries the show. She’s in practically every scene. On the one hand, we wanted to give opportunities to two children instead of just one. So there was that, but also kids can sometimes be kids. They can bust their knee up or just do whatever, so I was like, ‘Well, maybe we should have a little insurance policy and double cast this, just in case.’”