The play by William Gibson, based on Helen Keller’s autobiography, “The Story of My Life,” tells how teacher Anne Sullivan broke through to Keller, deaf and blind because of a childhood illness, when it seemed like no one else could.

For many in the Inland Northwest, “The Miracle Worker” is also beloved because actress Patty Duke, who starred in the play when it opened on Broadway and won the Academy Award for best supporting actress for her role in the film of the same name, called Coeur d’Alene home until her death last year.

In 2011, Duke directed a production of “The Miracle Worker” at Interplayers Theatre, which closed last year as the Modern Theatre Spokane.

It was for these reasons that director Brooke Wood and the rest of the Lake City Playhouse team decided to produce “The Miracle Worker,” which opens Friday. Azaria Podplesky/SR

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