Actress Channels Grief On Stage After Losing Two Children

Actress Ruthie Ann Miles is finding a unique connection between her professional work and her deepest personal sorrows. Miles, who experienced the profound loss of her four-year-old daughter Abigail in a 2018 New York City car accident, recently concluded her role in a new musical. In the production, she portrayed a mother grieving the murder of her son, a character that resonated deeply with her own journey of loss.

Miles described how her experiences inform her onstage performances, noting that she utilizes a "very deep well of emotion and grief" that is intrinsically part of her. However, she maintains a clear distinction between her personal mourning and her character's specific narrative, assuring that she does not conflate her own children with the character's son.

Despite the immense pain, Miles and her husband welcomed a third child, a daughter named Hope Elizabeth, in 2020. The actress expressed that she views the ability to feel and portray such profound emotions as a privilege, underscoring the value of experiencing life, even with its inherent pain.