by William Gibson
Experience the beloved, gripping and inspiring story based on the real-life events of Helen Keller and her teacher, Anne Sullivan. Set in the late 19th century, the play by William Gibson explores the transformative journey of communication and understanding between a young deaf-blind girl and her determined tutor. Through patience, perseverance, and empathy, Anne Sullivan unlocks Helen’s world, leading to a powerful and touching exploration of resilience, compassion, and the triumph of the human spirit.
The Miracle Worker began as a television play, and later won a Tony Award in 1959 for Gibson from his original 1957 telefilm script. Gibson, an American playwright, is best known for his plays The Miracle Worker and Two For the Seesaw, as well as for enlisting the talent of Anne Bancroft (as Sullivan), a then-unknown actress.
Don has been directing and serving as an acting coach in school and community theatre for most of his adult life while also serving as a high school teacher and school administrator. He finds it almost impossible to name a favorite show; he just loves the work. Equally comfortable at the helm of both plays and musicals, he has directed over fifty shows, several of them multiple times. He is delighted to be directing The Miracle Worker for Aurora Players.
Immortalized on-screen by Anne Bancroft and Patty Duke, this Tony Award-winning play is the story of Annie Sullivan and her student, Helen Keller, who lost her sight and hearing at the age of 19 months. The Miracle Worker explores the volatile relationship between a lonely teacher and her headstrong charge with compassion, humor, and dramatic tension.
Trapped in a secret, silent world, unable to communicate, young Helen is violent and spoiled, treated by her family as subhuman. Only Annie sees a mind and spirit waiting to be rescued from Helen’s dark, tortured silence. After scenes of intense physical and emotional struggle, Helen’s breakthrough finally arrives with the utterance of a single, glorious word: “water.”
The winner of four 1960 Tony Awards, including Best Play, The Miracle Worker will be presented onstage March 28-30, April 4-6, and 11-13, 2025.
Isa (Wray) Benstead
Annie Sullivan
Benjamin Davis
Captain Keller
Emerson Disch
Helen Keller (doubled)
Nadia Plotkin
Helen Keller (doubled)
Jennifer Grzeskiewicz
Kate Keller
Susan Musial
Aunt Ev
Matthew Touris
James Keller
Chuck Slisz
Doctor/Anagnos
Caroline Parzy-Sanders
Viney
Oliver Parzy-Sanders
Martha
Cameron Parzy-Sanders
Percy
Dakota Fuller
Blind Girls, Voices, Spectres
Dana Fuller
Blind Girls, Voices, Spectres
Emily Quinn
Blind Girls, Voices, Spectres
Aurora Rea
Blind Girls, Voices, Spectres
Rosalie Stephens
Blind Girls, Voices, Spectres
Firefly Weber
Blind Girls, Voices, Spectres
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