TUSCUMBIA-Helen Keller fans from around the world will soon be making their way to Tuscumbia to watch William Gibson’s epic drama that chronicles her early life performed on the grounds of the home where she grew up.
The 58th season of The Miracle Worker play at Ivy Green, the Home of Helen Keller, begins Friday, June 7. The play will be performed on Friday and Saturday nights though July 13.
Darren Butler, director of the play, said “The Miracle Worker” play at Ivy Green attracts a diverse audience. “People literally come from all over the world to see The Miracle Worker performed at Helen Keller’s home.”
The play depicts the life of Keller, from the discovery of her 
deafness and blindness, caused by a fever when she was 19 months old, to her learning to communicate with the help of her teacher Anne Sullivan. The climax of the play is when Keller spells w-a-t-e-r in Sullivan’s hand as water flows from the well pump. The miracle occurred barely a month after Sullivan arrived at Ivy Green in March 1887 to begin teaching an unruly and stubborn, 6-year-old. It is the Official State Outdoor Drama for Alabama and has been named a Top 20 Event by the Southeast Tourism Society.
Keller went on to become a world renowned author, lecturer and advocate for people with disabilities. She was known as America’s First Lady of Courage.
The gates at Ivy Green open at 6:30 p.m. for the play with the performance getting underway at 8 p.m. Tickets are $15 for reserved seats, $10 for general admission and include a self-guided tour of Ivy Green and its grounds. Concessions are available.
For tickets, or more details, call Ivy Green at 256-383-4066. For more places to see and things to do in Colbert County, call Colbert County Tourism and Convention Bureau at 256-383-0783.
