ATC
The beginning of an extraordinary working relationship and friendship between Helen Keller and her teacher Annie Sullivan is explored in the Auckland Theatre Company production of The Miracle Worker.
Meet the stars of the Auckland Theatre Company’s new show, The Miracle Worker.
The day Annie Sullivan arrived at the Keller household to work as a teacher would later be recalled by Helen Keller as being “my soul’s birthday”. Blind and deaf, Helen had spent years living in frustration and isolation. Through perseverance and innovation, Annie taught Helen a method of communication that changed not only Helen’s life, but the lives of blind and deaf people all over the world. The story of the incredible breakthrough is told in William Gibson’s Tony-winning play, The Miracle Worker – a classic revived for a new generation by the Auckland Theatre Company in a production directed by Margaret-Mary Hollins.
When Annie is hired by the Kellers to work with their daughter, they’re at a loss as to how to discipline and communicate with Helen. Laurel Devenie stars in The Miracle Worker as Helen’s mother Kate, a character who she says is “determined but tormented by Helen’s state and the lack of communication she has with her” prior to Annie’s arrival. “There is such a huge change that occurs over the course of the play in the household, and from the moment Annie Sullivan enters with her way of being and unorthodox method, everyone is forced to shift and it’s highly uncomfortable,” says Devenie. “Annie is quite an extraordinary person and I’m looking forward to diving into Kate’s reaction to her.”
Indeed, as the play’s title suggests, the real Annie Sullivan was inspirational. Only partially-sighted herself, she was just 20 years old when she was recommended by her alma mater, Perkins School for the Blind, to teach young Helen. Amelia Reynolds stars as Annie in The Miracle Worker
– a challenging role physically and emotionally. Soon after being cast, Reynolds sought to get in touch with people who are blind and/or deaf in preparation for the part. “I want to do what I can to ensure that I’m reflecting that experience as honestly as I can,” she says.
Reynolds will also explore how personal tragedy in Annie’s life impacted her relationship with Helen. Annie’s mother died when she was eight, and she was eventually abandoned by her father. She was left devastated when her younger brother Jimmie died while they lived in a poorhouse. “I think Annie holds a lot of grief and regret because she wasn’t able to protect him and he wasn’t able to fully reach his potential,” says Reynolds. “And I think she also personally feels like people haven’t seen her potential until now, and she can see that Helen has potential, and it’s almost like she sees herself and she sees her brother in Helen.”
With Helen and Annie having a decades-long friendship, Reynolds is looking forward to demonstrating that strong bond on stage. After meeting the actor playing Helen – 16-year-old Emma Kemp – Reynolds knew it wouldn’t be difficult to convey the close relationship. “I have no doubt it will be quite easy – I feel like I don’t have to portray a relationship, I’m looking forward to becoming good friends with her,” she says. “Emma is just so amazing, and I think people will be really blown away by her.”
To tell the story of a blind and deaf child’s struggle to communicate, the play calls for a high level of physical commitment from its actors. “The biggest thing is that it’s a very demanding role and that’s going to require me to really back myself as an
“EMMA IS JUST SO AMAZING ... PEOPLE WILL BE BLOWN AWAY BY HER.” AMELIA REYNOLDS
actor,” says Reynolds. “That will be a challenge, making sure that I’m match fit to meet the demands of the role.”
Devenie, meanwhile, is looking forward to exploring the tactile relationship Kate Keller has with Helen, including the “effect that the last five years have had on Kate physically”. She was also able to draw on her experience as a new mum to play Kate. “I would never have had the insight into the level of high alert and anxiety Kate might be feeling without my new and intense experience of being a mother.
“I certainly feel frazzled and stretched and baffled most of the time, as well as very much enjoying and being awed by it all, so I am sure this physical experience will help when engaging with Kate’s reality.”
The story told by The Miracle Worker continues to fascinate and resonate with audiences today, 60 years after the play’s Broadway debut and more than 50 years after Helen Keller’s death. “It’s about adversity, and I think that’s a story that is always of interest,” says Reynolds. “It’s a very female-focussed work – the men aren’t at the forefront. It’s Kate, Annie and Helen’s story. They’re all very different women and it’s talking about how they communicate together and learn from each other.”
Devenie agrees the play tells a remarkable tale. “I think any true story of extraordinary people is worth telling and retelling,” she says. “It is a story of someone’s incredible faith and commitment in figuring out how to get through to someone – even when you look at it through a modern lens, it is still incredible. It led the way for so many others.”
● The Miracle Worker, 7 – 23 May, ASB Waterfront Theatre, atc.co.nz
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