Like W-A-T-E-R for children

The Miracle Worker; 6:30 p.m. Wednesday; 12:30 and 6:30 p.m. Thursday; 8 p.m. Friday; 2 and 8 p.m. Saturday; and 2 p.m. Sunday; $15-$38. Sacramento Theatre Company, 1419 H Street; (916) 443-6722; www.sactheatre.org. Through October 28.

The Sacramento Theatre Company turns to the past for this venerable drama, which the company first staged five decades ago.

It turns out to be a savvy choice. This play about Helen Keller (blind, deaf, unable to speak) and her teacher, Anne Sullivan, may be an old chestnut—something middle-aged audience members probably haven’t thought about in years, and younger viewers have never encountered. But director Greg Alexander and his well-chosen cast make a strong case that this show is still worth doing, and the sturdy script—with three medium-length acts and two intermissions—delivers a genuine payoff.

Brittni Barger does well as the gutsy young teacher facing a monumental challenge in her first job. Helen Keller was played by teenage Bella Bagatelos in the performance I saw—Courtney Shannon alternates in the role—and handled herself with assurance. The always-reliable Gary Wright and Michele Hillen play Helen’s parents. Wright presents an appealing mix of Southern charm and humor mixed with parental resignation and then newfound hope, while Hillen radiates maternal concern.

The supporting cast—Jeffrey Lloyd Heatherly, Georgann Wallace, Tahlema Martin and several youthful performers alternating in smaller roles—also do quite well. In particular, Griffith Munn did a good job presenting teenage angst in the performance I saw.

All told, it’s a handsome show, sincerely and genuinely presented. Scenes that might have been merely pious connect with honest, well-expressed emotions. And it’s a pleasure to see a solidly staged American classic in Sacramento.