2010 - THEATRE - The miracle worker

Actors Jennifer Morrison and Matthew Modine take a bow following the Broadway opening of 'The Miracle Worker' at the Circle in the Square on March 3, 2010 in New York City.

Actors Alison Pill, Abigail Breslin and Jennifer Morrison attend the Broadway opening of "The Miracle Worker" at the Circle in the Square Theatre on March 3, 2010 in New York City.

Supporting actors register one emotion apiece — angry indignation from Helen’s father (Matthew Modine), ineffectual sweetness from her mother (Jennifer Morrison), shrill exasperation from both her half-brother (Tobias Segal) and aunt (Elizabeth Franz).

The evening’s most stirring acting comes from mini-miracle Lance Chantiles-Wertz, whose scenes as Annie’s ghostly little brother are spookily haunting.

While highs and lows are largely lacking in the emotions department, the set provides ups and downs. Furniture above the stenciled stage is constantly being lowered and raised as needed for the show, which is performed in the round, with the audience surrounding the action.

As such, there inevitably are scenes when you’ll be eyeballing backs. A few eclipsed exchanges isn’t a big problem. But a tearjerker that leaves you dry in the eyes — now that’s an issue.

It's a famous pair: Annie Sullivan was a young, inexperienced teacher from Boston. Helen Keller was a deaf and blind girl. In 1887, the Kellers, an affluent Southern family, hired Sullivan to help their young daughter. The Kellers loved Helen, but despaired of their wild child -- until Sullivan, with super-human tenacity, reached her. That climactic moment underscores the sustaining power of The Miracle Worker, now at Circle in the Square.

Starring Alison Pill as Annie Sullivan and Abigail Breslin as Helen Keller, the William Gibson play is a tribute to Sullivan, who endured a harrowing childhood, temporary blindness and loss of her beloved brother Jimmy. As a student at the Perkins School for the Blind, the tough girl got an education. But on that memorable day in Alabama, when she rescues Keller from oblivion, she gets something more: a vocation. Both would forever change how society views the disabled.

It was Mark Twain who called Sullivan a "miracle worker," and their uplifting journey is fertile ground for drama.

The current revival is a physical ordeal for its excellent leads, especially Pill, whose no-nonsense approach to Helen reveals both her determination and vulnerability. She centers this production through force of will. Thirteen-year-old Breslin, best known as an aspiring beauty-pageant contestant in Little Miss Sunshine, tackles a grueling assignment -- communicating via slaps, punches and grunts -- expertly.

Together, along with former House star Jennifer Morrison as Mrs. Keller, Matthew Modine as Captain Keller, Elizabeth Franz as Aunt Ev and Tobias Segal as James, Helen's half-brother, The Miracle Worker introduces a new generation to a remarkable story.

The major drawback is the venue. Director Kate Whoriskey has the unenviable task of staging the play's actions to accommodate the space, rather than the story. Meaning, at hugely dramatic points, audiences watch the backs of key characters, rather than their faces. The show, which is hugely physical, would be better served in a traditional theater. Still, no one who sees The Miracle Worker is likely to forget it.

The Keller family member who most touches the heart strings is Jennifer Morrison as the mother who must learn how to best love her child from another woman. Matthew Modine cuts a dashing figure as Captain Keller who obviously was better able to deal with the men he commanded during the war than with James (Tobias Segal), the son from a first marriage, and the afflicted wild child of his union with the younger Kate. Though rather obvious, the son's having to shout to be heard and understood by his macho father, does serve as a counterpoint to the battle of wills between young Helen and her teacher.

As I said at the outset, The Miracle Worker is a play about a miracle that really happened and that continues to amaze and inspire. The determination of Annie Sullivan, the courage of Helen's mother to listen to her head as well as her heart and let Annie take charge of her child, and the extraordinary achievements of the girl released from her dark and silent world . . . we need miracles like that to inspire us to find ways to unlock the doors that can lead us out of the dark shadows overhanging our world to a brighter and more optimisitic one.

The supporting performances are less effective, with Matthew Modine too blustery as Helen's Civil War veteran father; Jennifer Morrison ("House") not making much of an impression as Helen's devoted mother; and Tobias Segal overdoing the jokiness as Helen's emotionally frustrated half brother. Elizabeth Franz fares better in the comparatively smaller role of Helen's aunt.

Yet in this play actions must generally speak louder than words. In addition to the stars, Matthew Modine and Tobias Segal convince as Captain Keller and his hapless grown son James. Jennifer Morrison is somewhat less interesting as Kate, while Elizabeth Franz and Daniel Oreskes satisfy in lesser roles.

At every turn, Annie is frustrated by the acquiescing love of Helen’s parents, which leads us to the main, moral conviction of the playwright: Pity is not love. Annie fights with Captain Keller (Matthew Modine), who resents this strong-willed female intruder. Neither he nor his wife, Kate (Jennifer Morrison), can understand what they are doing wrong, or why Annie must be so brutal with Helen.

Unfortunately, neither parent manifests enough intelligence or wit to compete with Annie, and the scenes lack tension: Modine should be a more convincingly dominating figure, while Morrison’s supposedly corrosive love, which should be equal in strength to Annie’s unsentimental love, is only tender and warm.

Still, no one who sees The Miracle Worker is likely to forget it.