Theater 294, LI Rep Present THE MIRACLE WORKER

The Long Island Repertory Co. is presenting The Miracle Worker, William Gibson's classic play about Helen Keller and Annie Sullivan, from April 20 to May 6 at Theater 294.

The play, a moving drama produced by Marlo Roberson and directed by Charles Calabrese and Adrienne Pellegrino, is being presented at Theater 294, 294 Route 109 (Farmingdale Rd.), East Farmingdale. Tickets are $20 and $15 for seniors and students online at Tix.

The show, based on Helen Keller's autobiography, The Story of My Life, follows the Long Island Repertory's production of To Kill a Mocking Bird, based on Harper Lee's novel. It is the latest in a season focusing on great American stories and a powerful revival of a show that has had Broadway productions and is the basis for an Academy Award winning movie.

Gibson first wrote The Miracle Worker as a teleplay before adapting it as a play that ran on Broadway and then as an Academy Award winning movie.

The Miracle Worker follows Helen Keller's journey from silent isolation to awareness and literacy, telling her story based on her own account.

Blind and deaf since early childhood, Helen (Chloe Keil) is stubborn and essentially imprisoned in physical and spiritual solitude.

Unsure of what to do, her desperate parents seek help from a young and inexperienced teacher, Annie Sullivan (Jocelyn D. Morton), who is also half-blind.

Despite family resistance and the extreme difficulty of teaching Helen to communicate effectively, Annie persists, sensing there is the potential for a rich and rewarding life.

The film version was nominated for five Academy awards, winning one for Anne Bancroft as best actress and one for Patty Duke as best supporting actress. Performances on stage bring the story to life again.

In the Long Island Repertory production, Chloe Keil plays Helen, Jocelyn D. Morton portrays Annie Sullivan, John Wolf plays the doctor, JoAnn Celentano plays Katie, Anthony Buonagurio plays Percy , Kevin Hagan plays Captain Keller, Cooper Keil plays Martin, Maxine Wolberg plays Aunt Ev and Tom Murtagh plays James.

Lights and sound are by Alexander Vartanian. Judith Anderson is stage manager. Voice overs were done by Cooper Keil, Calabrese, Pellegrino and Wolf.

"This timeless work reinforces the imperative to never give up on a human soul," said Charles Calabrese, a physician and co-director." It is applicable to all of us and all relationships."

The play tells an at once personal and a powerful story filled with moving moments. While Helen Keller has become an icon, The Miracle Worker shows us a human being and not someone in a history book.

"We see ourselves in each of the characters," Calabrese said. "We empathize with their struggle, and exalt in their success."

The Miracle Worker has proved at once a timeless story and a topical show, from the Academy Award winning movie to the play on Broadway and beyond.

The Miracle Worker debuted on television in 1957 as a Playhouse 90 broadcast, which Gibson adapted for a 1959 Broadway production with Anne Bancroft as Annie Sullivan that led to a movie in 1962 and other versions made for TV in 1979 and 2000.

The Miracle Worker - The Long Island Repertory Co. presents the classic William Gibson play about Helen Keller's life. A captivating, tender and at times explosive tale and an American classic. $20/$15 students and seniors. April 20- May 6, Theater 294, 294 Route 109 (Farmingdale Rd.,) East Farmingdale. 516- 531-3525. https://themiracleworker.brownpapertickets.com