HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 1998-07-01, Page 18PAGE 18. THE CITIZEN, WEDNESDAY, JULY 1, 1998.
Reaching out
As Helen Keller's parents come to take their daughter
home, Annie Sullivan begs for more time to teach her
beyond what is right and wrong, but to understand. From
left: Barbara Fulton as Kate Keller, Cynthia Dale as
Sullivan, Devin Gudahl as Captain Arthur Keller and , in
the foreground with Fergus, as Beau the dog, Trish
Lindstrom as Helen. The Miracle Worker is in production
at the Avon Theatre in Stratford.
Theatre review
Strong female roles
lead Avon's 'Miracle'
GRADUATION
Heidi Scrimgeour daughter
of Don and Lenore
Scrimgeour graduated from
the University of Windsor on
June 7, 1998 with a Bachelor
of Social Work Degree. Heidi
is employed by the
Children's Aid Society at
Orillia, Ontario.
Congratulations and Love
from your family.
By Bonnie Gropp
Citizen staff
Strength of character is perhaps
the paramount message that would
spring to mind thinking of The Mir-
acle Worker.
Now appearing at Stratford's
Avon Theatre this story based on
the life of Helen Keller, whom a
childhood illness left deaf and
blind, has two of the gutsiest
female characters ever brought to
life.
Yet, while Keller's determination
to communicate is surpassed only
by Annie Sullivan's to teach her,
many other messages of equal
magnitude come forth. Set in 1888
Alabama, the play's values should
translate nicely for every parent
and teen of this permissive society.
Sullivan (Cynthia Dale) is as
much a fighter as her charge.
Raised in an asylum, educated at a
school for the blind and brought to
the Keller home to try to teach their
isolated child, Sullivan believes
that discipline is the prerequisite
for knowledge. She feels that
Helen's mother, Kate (Barbara Ful-
ton), has in loving her daughter too
much, caused willful disobedience,
while father (Kevin Gudahl) in his
pity has overlooked the child's
intelligence.
Annie is challenged to not just
bring Helen under control, but to
open her eyes through words.
Trish Lindstrom in her Stratford
debut opens herself to the demands
of the role of Helen. Her on-stage
ramblings, stilted puppet-like ges-
tures and exaggerated expressions
manage to disturb, yet impress. In a
matter of seconds she could make
you angry, make you laugh, make
you weep.
The feisty Annie is an enviable
role for any actress and Dale brings
a sense of grace and lightness to it.
Playing up the teacher's often self-
deprecating humour, Dale gives us
an Annie of contradictions. She is
soft and womanly, iron-fisted and
unbendable; comic and tragic; gen-
tle and firm; carefree and haunted.
Fulton is wonderfully genteel,
while Gudahl's Captain is an Old
South gentleman patriarch, whose
explosions seem often extreme and
too frequent. He is at his best when
his attempts to assert authority are
thwarted by the fairer sex surround-
ing him.
Also in the cast are Mary Pitt as
Aunt Ev, the servants, Anthony
McLean, Sandy Ross, Ngozi Paul,
and Roy Lewis, who did double
duty as the doctor. Adam Brazier
was James Keller and Larry Man-
nell played Mr. Anagnos. The asy-
lum figures are Evan Buliung,
Susie Burnett, Melinda Deines,
Sarah Evans, Pamela Johnson and
Lewis.
The set design by Dany Lyne is
wonderful, its warm shades of
brown framed by a tattered shroud,
Continued' on page 19
Summer school
a second chance
By Jody Walker
Did your son or daughter fail a
course of Math or English in the
general or advanced level in Grades
9 - 13? Send them to summer
school!
Summer school has been
operating for at least 25 years or
more. There is no cost. You may
provide your own transportation or
there is a bus. The bus leaves from
F. E. Madill Secondary School at
7:45 a.m. sharp. On its way to
Clinton it stops at Belgrave corner
at 7:55 a.m., Blyth Hotel corner at
8 a.m. and Londesboro corner at
8:10 a.m. Some students may also
want to get picked up in
Dungannon at the United Church at
7:40 a.m.
The classes will run from 8:30 -
12 noon for the period of July 6 to
July 28, 1998. If a student misses
anymore than three days, he/she
will not receive the credit. Students
cannot receive a new credit, it has
to be an upgrade of a course
previously studied.
The subject that your student
takes in summer school will not be
exactly the same as the one taken at
F. E. Madill Secondary School
through a regular semester. This
course works on things that are
essential for the next grade.
Mrs. Elston, a guidance
counsellor at F. E. Madill
Secondary School estimates that 98
per cent of the students that go to
summer school come out with an
improved mark.
YEARBOOKS
Laura Wilkins was one of the
two editors of this year's yearbook
committee. There were 15 people
on the committee who all worked
very hard to complete this project.
Altogether the committee
estimates they spent a total of 600-
hours working on the yearbook.
They sold a total of 950. More than
three-quarters of the students at
Madill have bought a book to
remember this year.
As co-editors, Wilkins and
Christina DeWit had many duties
and responsibilities. This included
organizing everything, making sure
everyone meets the assigned
deadlines, editing everything, as
well as taking pictures.
The teacher advisors were, Mrs.
L. Elston and Mrs. V. King-
Sherwood.
Coming at you
It was the end of the schoolyear, and despite last week's
unseasonably hot and humid temperatures, students
everywhere, like this potato sack racer and his coach at
East Wawanosh Public School were all smiles. Many
schools held special activities such as the Play Day at
Belgrave last Wednesday. Games like an obstacle course
and wheelbarrow race had the youngsters working up a
sweat, only to get a good cooling when the sprinklers
were turned on for everyone to help beat the heat.
Kevin Scrimgeour son of
Don and Lenore Scrimgeour
graduated in Toronto on
June 12, 1998. Kevin
received his Doctor of
Acupuncture and Diploma of
Traditional Chinese
Medicine, he is also a
member of the Chinese
Medicine and Acupuncture
Association of Canada.
Congratulations and Love
from your family.
[Help protect the environment
'Reduce, reuse and recycle
April N. Gross, daughter of
Gordon and Bernice of
Auburn, graduated on the
President's Honour Roll from
the Legal Administration
program at Durham College,
Oshawa on June 13, 1998.
She has accepted a position
with Stewart & Stone
Conveyancing of Whitby.
Congratulations, April!
We are very proud of your
accomplishments!
Love,
Mom, Dad, Anita & Bryan