CMU School of Drama


Sunday, February 14, 2010

Hitting Broadway, Punching and Slapping

NYTimes.com: "LOSING control and making it seem real is one of the most difficult challenges an actor can face. Those who succeed are generally seasoned artists like Geoffrey Rush, who portrayed the traumatized pianist in the film “Shine” or Vanessa Redgrave, who played the morphine-addicted mother in the 2003 Broadway revival of “Long Day’s Journey into Night.” Children, lacking both life experience and training, can have a harder time — which is why the role of Helen Keller, the blind and deaf 6-year-old-turning-7-year-old at the heart of William Gibson’s play “The Miracle Worker,” is one of the most difficult in drama; the character must be chiefly expressed through physical action."

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

I've seen the miracle worker several times, and I think it should be an interesting prospect for broadway goers. However, the story doesn't particularly interest me. If I were to see it, it would primarily be for the acting. I'm curious to see if Ms. Breslin pulls off this role. From what I gathered from the article, it sounds like her family has her grounded in a good balance between fulfilling a love for acting, and achieving stardom. She seems to have a good head on her shoulders, and I'm praying the flood of mindless starlets that have graced the covers of US and Star Magazine have taught her parents a bit about how fame can effect a young actor in the spotlight. I would hate to see anything happen to her, because she is quite talented. I would also really love to see Allison Pill. I've seen her in a few movies, and I think she's pretty talented. The transition from the more "common, everyday" movie roles to intense theatrical ones for both actresses will be worth observing.

SParker said...

It seems that Abigail Breslin is very suited for her new role. From the way the article portrays her, she is interested in developing herself as an actress, not just pursuing fame, but also making choices that will open up her career later on. It's great that she has a love for what she does, and that she has escaped the child actor trap that seems to be too common of a story.

C. Ammerman said...

I'm always slightly intrigued with new child stars, especially given the number or horror stories that seem to litter the modern day view on such topics. It is nice to see that Ms. Breslin seems to have picked up an agent of some kind that understands that there is a necessary balance to all things, even how much you can push a child star. I am interested to see just how well Ms. Breslin transitions from the movies to the stage given that it seems the shift does not go gracefully for most, and she has the added challenge of tackling the roll of Hellen Keller.

CBrekka said...

This is definitely a very powerful trio of women. Abigail has the efficient agent in terms of scripts and audience relationships while not pushing her to grow up into a starlet too quickly. The mother (parents) that aren't in this for the money or 15 minutes of fame, but supporting their daughter in something that she is passionate and talented in. And then a 13 year old who definitely seems to be an old soul. I wouldn't be surprised if she ends up being one of the top actresses ever. And with a role model like Maryl Streep, the girl can't go wrong haha.

Annie J said...

When I first heard that they'd passed over a disabled actor for this role, I was upset. But after reading this, I think that Abigail Breslin is really doing a fantastic job. She knows how to learn from characters with lives she has no connection to. It's really rather impressive. I also like that she's working very hard not to hurt herself or the actor playing Annie. I remember reading about the last run of The Miracle Worker, and how the actors playing Annie and Hellen would actually injure each other every night. At one point, Hellen dislocated Annie's shoulder. The attention to safety is very smart and admirable.
Abigail is really a remarkable young actor.

Timothy Sutter said...

I think that Ms. Breslin will have an excellent run in this particular show. While I cannot account for her live theater performances, I know that her work in film is well researched and excecuted. If her talent on the big screen is any indication of what is going on onstage, then we are in for a real treat with herperformance. In the article is seems that Ms. Breslin is a grounded young woman who I think will go far in the world of theater

Hjohnson said...

I really like Abigail Breslin in all of her films, so it would be pretty cool to see how she is on stage--especially in such an nontraditional role. She has always come across as very mature and down-to-earth, so I expect that this acting challenge is something she would be very excited about and eager to meet. I would definitely like to see The Miracle Worker if I had the opportunity. Abigail Breslin is probably going to be in the business for a long time.

A. Surasky said...

It looks like Abigail Breslin is going to do just fine in her role as Helen Keller, and it looks like she’s doing overall pretty well in her career as a young actress. I’ll be curious to see her in this and other roles as she continues to get older to see how she does as the years go on. Great to see her trying out acting out Broadway rather than the big screen, and should be fun to watch where she goes from here.