The Miracle Worker (play)

The Miracle Worker
Written by	William Gibson
Characters	Annie Sullivan Helen Keller Captain Arthur Keller Kate Keller James Keller Aunt Ev (Evelyn) Anagnos Viney
Date premiered	October 19, 1959
Place premiered	Playhouse Theatre
Original language	English
Setting	Tuscumbia, Alabama

The Miracle Worker is a three-act play by William Gibson adapted from his 1957 Playhouse 90 teleplay of the same name. It is based on Helen Keller's autobiography The Story of My Life.

In Tuscumbia, Alabama, an illness renders infant Helen Keller blind, deaf, and consequently mute (deaf-mute). Pitied and badly spoiled by her parents, Helen is taught no discipline and, by the age of six, grows into a wild, angry, tantrum-throwing child in control of the household. Desperate, the Kellers hire Anne Sullivan to serve as governess and teacher for their daughter. After several fierce battles with Helen, Anne convinces the Kellers that she needs two weeks alone with Helen in order to achieve any progress in the girl's education. In that time, Annie teaches Helen discipline through persistence and consistency and language through hand signals, a double breakthrough that changes Helen's life and has a direct effect on the lives of everyone in the family.

The play premiered on Broadway at the Playhouse Theatre on October 19, 1959, and closed on July 1, 1961, after 719 performances. The production was directed by Arthur Penn with scenic and lighting design by George Jenkins and costumes by Ruth Morley. The cast starred Anne Bancroft as Anne Sullivan and Patty Duke as Helen Keller. Featured in the cast were Torin Thatcher as Captain Keller, Patricia Neal as Kate Keller, Michael Constantine as Anagnos and Beah Richards as Viney. Patty Duke remained with the play for its entire run. Suzanne Pleshette eventually replaced Anne Bancroft.

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