Ozaukee Living local
  • Home
  • Stories
  • Events
  • About Oz
  • #EditorOfOzReviews

Once upon a time...

​You can get OLL stories delivered weekly if you subscribe here.

​Photo by Nicole Sova

The First Stage Young Company presents: 'The Miracle Worker'

5/5/2019

0 Comments

 

By Mary Boyle

Helen Keller was born almost 140 years ago in Alabama.  At the age of 18 months, she was stricken with an illness that took away both her sight and her hearing, thrusting her into a world of complete darkness.  While there were schools for the blind, and braille had been invented 56 years before Helen was born, there was little known about how to help a person who was both deaf and blind.  Luckily, Helen's parents were people of means, and they were able to find for a teacher for Helen when she was just 6 years old.  Annie Sullivan, who was just 20 years old, herself, was able to finally give Helen the gift of communication.  Helen wrote of this transformation at length in her autobiography, The Story of My Life, published in 1903, which the playwright William Gibson used as a basis for his Broadway production in 1959.    ​Fifty years later, Helen's story is still touching audiences, still incredibly relevant, and the perfect production to end the First Stage Young Company season with.  Don't miss your opportunity to see The Miracle Worker. 

Directed by the amazing Matt Daniels, who is also the Director of Young Company, the award-winning training program for advanced high school actors at First Stage, The Miracle Worker is not only a testament to the human spirit, but a reminder that all people, regardless of their abilities, have value and deserve a chance to reach their potential; that our greatest teachers can be found in those we least expect; and, that good communication can overcome almost any obstacle. 

The Young Company cast for The Miracle Worker includes: Jennie Babisch as Annie Sullivan; Meghan DeRoche as Kate Keller; Eloise Field as Anagnos/Belle; Addy Grace as Percey/Doctor/; Kyra Mathias as Viney/Martha/; Ashley Nord as Helen Keller; Mathilde Prosen-Oldani as James Keller; Gabe Smith as Captain Keller; and, Chloe Winney as Aunt Ev.

While most people know the story of a deaf and blind girl who learned to communicate, Daniels insists that one of the best parts of the story is what most people don't know.  "Helen Keller went on to be the first deaf-blind person to graduate from college.  She went on to a life of social activism, including co-founding the American Civil Liberties Union, fighting for worker's rights, working tirelessly for the American Federation of the Blind, and acting as America's first Goodwill Ambassador during WWII.  She was friends with mark Twain, Albert Einstein, and Eleanor Roosevelt.  She learned several languages, including their braille counterparts, received six honorary doctorates, and fought for humanitarian causes until she dies in 1968."

Imagine what may have happened if Helen's parents hadn't believed in her ability to learn?  If they hadn't fought for her and given her every opportunity?  If they had let their prejudices against Annie Sullivan's age or the fact that she was Irish and from the North stop them from hiring her?  What if all of the people in Helen's life underestimated and undervalued her because of her deafness and blindness?  The world would be a very different, and much darker, place.

Not only is this a classic production that everyone should see, the Young Company does a phenomenal job with it; they have never failed to impress me, and I will continue to insist that their productions are some of the best theatre in Milwaukee at an incredible value.  Don't miss your chance to see this.

THE MIRACLE WORKER runs May 10 – 19, 2019 at the Milwaukee Youth Arts Center, located at 325 W. Walnut Street in downtown Milwaukee. Tickets are $14 and may be purchased online at www.firststage.org or through the First Stage Box Office at (414) 267-2961. Performance runtime is approximately two hours and twenty minutes, which includes two intermissions. Suggested for families and young people ages 12+.

About First Stage

First Stage is one of the nation’s leading theaters for young people and families. First Stage touches hearts, engages minds and transforms lives by creating extraordinary theater experiences through professional theater productions that inspire, enlighten and entertain. Its Theater Academy, the nation’s largest high-impact theater training program for young people, fosters life skills through stage skills and serves over 2,100 students each year. As Wisconsin’s leader in arts-integrated education in schools, First Stage’s dynamic Theater in Education programs promote literacy, character building and experiential learning throughout the curriculum, serving over 20,000 students each year. First Stage was selected to participate in the Partners in Education program of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts (2012), and was the recipient of the Milwaukee Business Journal’sEureka Award, recognizing creativity and innovation in business, education and the arts for its Next Steps program for students on the autism spectrum (2013, 2015). First Stage is a member of TYA/USA, the American Alliance for Theatre and Education, the Wisconsin Alliance for Arts Education, Milwaukee Arts Partners and is a cornerstone member of the United Performing Arts Fund (UPAF).

0 Comments

Your comment will be posted after it is approved.


Leave a Reply.

    Archives

    December 2022
    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    July 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    March 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    April 2014

    Categories

    All
    Art
    Ballet
    Beer Garden
    Belgium
    Camps For Kids
    Cedarburg
    Citizen Action
    Classes
    Classes For Kids
    Coffee
    Community Events
    Concert
    Concert Series
    Dance
    Dinner
    Fall Fun
    Family Fun
    Farmers Market
    Farms
    Festival
    Fireworks
    Fish Fry
    Fundraiser
    Grafton
    Health
    History
    Holidays
    Lake Michigan
    Live Music
    Local Food
    Mequon
    Milwaukee
    Milwaukee River
    Newburg
    Night Life
    Open Mic
    Orchestra
    Outdoors
    OzEats
    Pancake Breakfast
    Parade
    People In Our Neighborhood
    Port Washington
    Reading
    Recipes
    Restaurant
    Run/Walk
    Saukville
    Sheboygan
    Shop Local
    Storytime
    Survey
    Theatre
    Thiensville
    Waukesha
    Workshop

    RSS Feed

Published By:

Picture

Ozaukee Living Local
A Community Supported Publication

OLL is always looking for Contributing Writers and Photography, which is an excellent way to highlight what your business or organization is doing in Oz.  Not a writer but have a Story Idea or Event Submission?  Just contact us at:
 mary@ozaukeelivinglocal.com  

Contact Us

mary@ozaukeelivinglocal.com

Join our mailing list today!  One email newsletter a week, every Friday, with everything you need to know about what's happening in Oz.  
Subscribe Now
  • Home
  • Stories
  • Events
  • About Oz
  • #EditorOfOzReviews