After months of rehearsal and getting ready, The Miracle Worker has finally wrapped up after three successful shows. Here are some highlights of this Cappies production.

The PFHS Drama department recently wrapped their winter play, The Miracle Worker, which was originally written by William Gibson about the relationship between a troubled girl, Helen Keller, and her devoted teacher, Annie Sullivan. Helen Keller raised awareness for those with disabilities in a time of little acceptance. Everyone has heard the story of Hellen Keller, the blind and deaf girl who despite all odds learned to read and write. Keller published two books, advocated for women’s suffrage, and changed how the world viewed the blind and deaf. This story is intense, frustrating, and ultimately satisfying to see these two learn to work together. 

“For the first Cappies show, this is an amazing production and the students did truly inspirational work” Tech Director Kristin Bird said. 

The leads for The Miracle Worker were Lauren Quick who played Hellen Keller and Natalie Brown who played her teacher Annie Sullivan. Despite being a freshman, Lauren played the lead role. “At first, I was really scared. Miracle Worker is my third show I’ve done as an actor and my first lead role,” said Brown.

However as production and rehearsals started, Quick got more comfortable. “As the cast got closer, I gained more confidence in the role,” said Quick. Portraying someone who’s both blind and deaf is a daunting task, but Quick managed to find her footing, “The most challenging part is making it look realistic. I tried to ignore how I would act normally to loud noises or distracting props which was difficult,” said Quick. 

The play follows Keller and Sullivan’s story of meeting and learning to work together. At first Keller and Sullivan don’t mesh well, which causes some physical fighting between the two of them. Although many scenes between Keller and Sullivan were extremely physical, there were no hard feelings between Quick and Brown, “During rehearsal, it never seemed awkward to do non-verbal scenes. I think it was because we were so invested in our characters,” said Natalie Brown. In one scene, Quick slaps Brown and in another, Brown pours an entire pitcher of water on Quick. “It wasn’t Natalie and Lauren slapping each other, it’s Annie and Helen,” added Brown. 

Preparing for The Miracle Worker was fun but nerve wracking. “We had a very short amount of time to build the set because we didn’t have complete access to the stage due to a band concert,” said stage crew member Ashlee Round. Getting everything together quickly and seamlessly was a difficult task made more difficult due to a tight schedule. 

The entire stage had to be built in only four days. “Definitely an ups and down process, one of trial and error, and one of compromise to bring a piece of everyone’s vision to the stage,” stage manager Saba Banaii added. Building the stage and props was a process in itself. The Miracle Worker is a very prop centric production/“When we started using the props, the show came alive. By the last dress rehearsal we were satisfied and proud of the show,” said Quick. Due to a cooperative and passionate cast and crew, everything worked out in the end. “We managed stress and were able to work together in teams and plan in order to execute the final touches for the show,” said Banaii.