AUDITION DATES FOR BOTH ADULTS AND CHILDREN WILL BE JULY 26TH AND JULY 27TH AT 6:30 PM EACH EVENING.
Complete your audition form now and choose your audition day at cast98.com/ref/theatreofgadsden

Helen is a bright, strong, energetic child -- but left both blind and deaf in the wake of an illness as a baby, she is also a feral, frustrated mystery to her exhausted family. Her heartbroken mother Kate is Helen’s best protector, while her half-brother James wants to send Helen to an institution, and her father Arthur Keller, a former Captain in the Confederate Army, is worried for the safety of their new baby. As a last resort, the Kellers send for a governess from the the prestigious Perkins Institute for the Blind, and get Annie Sullivan, a lively and stubborn Yankee girl, barely out of school herself, with the experience of childhood blindness -- now cured, after numerous operations -- and the title of valedictorian her main recommendations. Driven by the demons of her traumatic past, Annie, the unlikely Miracle Worker, fights to reach Helen and bring light to the darkness of her mind. But faced with the well-meaning pity of the Kellers, the curious sneers of James, and the fearful, furious trickery of Helen herself, it will take all of Annie’s patience, creativity, and firmness of spirit to bring about the transformation of Helen, the trapped wild creature, into Helen, the brilliant and communicative child she could become.

The story of The Miracle Worker is based on the memoirs of Helen Keller herself during her childhood in Tuscumbia, AL. This show is in celebration of our season celebrating Alabama and endorsed by the AL 200 Bicentennial Committee.

Audition Form Information

The Theatre of Gadsden is going to start using an online service called Cast98 for our future shows. Cast98 enables us to handle auditions online (no more paper forms to fill out!) and makes scheduling rehearsals a lot easier on our directors.

What this means for you: If you wish to audition or work on the crew of this show or one of our shows in the future, you will need to create a profile on Cast98. Fill out your contact info, past show experience, and conflict calendar and then you'll be ready to sign up for an audition time. Make sure you remember to update all of your info before signing up for an audition. Note to parents: You will need to create a separate profile for each child. Even if you aren't auditioning for this show, go ahead and sign up and spend some time creating your profile ad you will be ready to go for the next show!

We think you're going to really enjoy using Cast98, and you'll see why after we cast our next show (spoiler: you'll get a personalized rehearsal schedule!). You can also save your cast bio on Cast98 so that you don't have to write it from scratch every show.
Need help getting started? If you have any trouble using Cast98, please don't ask us! We will not know the answer! For tech support or questions about Cast98, use their Help features.
Follow this link to sign up for Cast98: https://cast98.com/ref/theatreofgadsden
Here is a link to our studio page on Cast98: https://cast98.com/studios/theatreofgadsden
And here are some videos from Cast98 to help you get started: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLEVRMBYgFs96qWx6bHSkLCmma8nrT3wnI
Casting

Ages are listed as approximate. If you are in the general age RANGE or can play a particular age, please audition. Often the ages of characters are adjusted (within reason) when we are casting these shows. Please RESEARCH THE SHOW before auditioning. It will increase your chances of being cast tremendously.

Character Breakdown:

Annie Sullivan - Helen’s teacher, a strong and vibrant woman who is determined to connect Helen to the world, there is a crude vitality to her, and she is undeterred by the Kellers’ fierce protection of their daughter, requires intense physical scenes. Ethnicity: White / European Descent. Age: 22-28.

Helen Keller - a deaf blind mute, trapped in her own world, unable to speak, hear, or see, she is almost not human as she has been blind and deaf since she was stricken with scarlet fever as a baby, requires intense physical scenes. Ethnicity: White / European Descent. Age: 9-11

Captain Arthur Keller - Helen’s father. A captain, he is stern, but devoted to his family. He struggles to connect to young Helen, but he is loving nonetheless. Ethnicity: White / European Descent. Age: 40-50.

Kate Keller - Helen’s mother who is tormented by Helen’s perceivably insurmountable disability, she seeks to please Helen in order to avoid the tantrums and to compensate for her extreme misfortune. She is a captain’s wife - submissive in some capacity and completely devoted to her husband, but a fiercely devoted mother as well.. Ethnicity: White / European Descent. Age: 28-38.

James Keller: Helen’s half-brother, son of the captain, described as indolent, sees Helen as mentally defective and believes it best she be put in an asylum. Ethnicity: White / European Descent. Age: 18-25.

Aunt Ev - Helen’s aunt, a talkative, opinionated woman who serves as the catalyst for the Kellers’ contact with the Perkins School for the Blind. Ethnicity: All Ethnicities. Age: 40-60.

Anagnos - Annie’s counselor at the Perkins Institution for the Blind, a dear and kind man who is very fond of Annie, serves as a mentor and friend. May also double as the doctor. Ethnicity: All Ethnicities. Age: 40-55.

Viney - servant, cheerful and very loving towards the Keller children. Ethnicity: Black / African Descent. Age: 30-50.

Martha - Viney’s daughter and a playmate of Helen. Ethnicity: Black / African Descent. Age: 10-15.

Percy - Viney’s son and a playmate of Helen. Ethnicity: Black / African Descent. Age: 9-11.

Blind Children - Children in the home for the blind. Ethnicity: All Ethnicities. Age: 7-15.