Marina Macherone, a 13-year-old and Mohonasen 8th grader, snagged the role as Helen Keller in the New York State Theater Institute’s upcoming production The Miracle Worker.
`I just love performing in general,` said Macherone. `In my opinion it is the best way to express yourself.`
She said when she younger she used to see a lot of theater based movies and would go to the shows that came to town. Previously she did a couple of school plays. When she got the role on an Annie national tour in 2007 she said she really got into theater and wanted to pursue it. Also, she has been dancing for eight years, which helped provide her with a foundation for acting.
`It is a very, very big role and I’ve never really gotten a role this big,` said Macherone. `I am very happy and very excited for the show.`
When she found out she was selected for the play she said she was on a beach and `it just made my day even better.`
The play takes place mostly in the Keller household with some scenes taking place at Perkins School for the Blind where Annie Sullivan was studying before teaching Helen Keller. There are also Sullivan’s flashbacks to her home outside of Boston where she lived from ages 8 to 14. The play is a drama depicting a clash of wills between the blind and deaf Keller and Sullivan as she tries to teach the young girl.
Macherone’s mother, Kerry, said her daughter has been able to manage her schoolwork and gets straight A’s at school, along with taking 15 hours of dancing lessons a week. Her daughter gets tutored to help keep her grades up and not fall behind.
`As long she keeps her grades she can do as much as she wants,` said her mother Kerry.
Macherone said this role is different for her and she enjoys being exposed to different characters and personas. She said normally she is a very giggly person, but she has had to learn to keep a straight face and remain serious while performing. Another challenge for her was the fact Keller was blind and she really isn’t supposed to be able to see in her role.
`I normally do really happy, cheerful roles that are more like me,` said Macherone. `This is different, because she is a very solemn person. It is a very serious role. I like that I had the new challenge.`
Her family has also been very supportive of her, Macherone said. Recently she got a manager and she takes a lot of trips to New York City, which can be at the last minute, for acting roles.
While she wants to make it to Broadway eventually, she said she also would like to get acting roles in TV shows and movies.
`She was defiantly a Shirley Temple fan at 18 months old,` said her mother. `She was singing before talking and dancing before walking.`
The show previewed for a school audience on Friday, Oct. 1, at 10 a.m. and for the public on Saturday, Oct. 2, at 8 p.m. The official opening was Sunday, Oct. 3 at 2 p.m. and will run till Oct. 15. All performances are scheduled at the Schacht Fine Arts Center, 5 Division Street, on the campus of Russell Sage College.
`As far as performing in front of audience she is seasoned at that, but the challenge comes having her entire class come,` said her mother.
Macherone doesn’t seem to be too nervous about her upcoming performances though.
`I don’t really get nervous; I plan on having fun,` she said. `It is a lot less pressure when the lights are off in the theater and you don’t know how is looking at you.“