Imagine going through life without ever seeing anything. Light, dark - it makes no difference. Imagine then that your isolation does not stop there. You cannot hear anything, so no one can describe what is around you. Your own mother is merely a pair of arms hugging you as you struggle through life.
College sophomore Liza Berkowitz was given the task to imagine all of this when she played Helen Keller in Professor of Theater Studies John Ammerman's "The Miracle Worker" workshop Friday and Saturday night.
The Burlington Road Building Theater Lab housed two scenes that focused on behavior and relationships and gave the audience insight into the way Helen functioned within the Keller family sphere. Patriarchal Captain Keller, played by College junior Jack Lannaman and his caring and desperate wife, Kate, played by College freshman Brittney Abbass, struggled with their daughter's disability until Annie Sullivan, played by College senior Doriet Berkowitz, came along.
Sullivan took charge of Helen's learning process, and taught her the basics, from eating at the table with a spoon, to the fact that objects had names. Ammerman's highly physical production illustrated this difficult process well.
The Berkowitz sisters often struggled with each other on stage, rolling around on the ground or climbing over table and chairs in a desperate attempt for victory. The younger Berkowitz's portrayal of Helen was amazing - face always up, eyes always wide open, breathing heavily as a sign of discontent. Her sister's Annie Sullivan was played with such subtle sympathy and strength as to bring tears to audience members' eyes after only 15 minutes on stage.
Lannaman turned in a notable performance, as did College sophomore Rob Kimmer, playing the Keller's son. Disagreeing with his father and siding with Sullivan, Kimmer brought a strong presence to the stage, though he was overshadowed by Lannaman's Captain Keller.
Though the "fight" scenes between Keller and Sullivan were sometimes aggravating in their length (one wanted Sullivan to just catch Keller and make her sit), the length was necessary in the end. As only two scenes were presented, a repetitive aspect was the only way to convey the long struggle that Sullivan endured. Ammerman managed to bring together a cast that not only complimented each other, but also stood out on their own as strong characters - no easy feat with the workshop's short rehearsal period. This sort of exploration of a play is interesting for actor and audience member alike, and future endeavors by those involved would be well-worth anyone's time.
