As a teacher and mentor, she is highly sought after for her knowledge of and application of the classic themes and premises of life in modern times.

In 1958, she graduated magna cum laude from Bryn Mawr College with a bachelor of arts degree in the classics and music.

When he died in 1958, he left Marianne a large fortune and a collection of gifts that furthered her interest in Ireland and the desire to give generously.

[4] Years later, she did the same thing in Ireland by founding the Thesaurus Linguae Hibernicae which computerizes Irish literature no matter what language they were actually written in.

[3][4][5][6] That same year, she was made a commander of the Order of the Phoenix, one of Greece’s highest awards, by Prime Minister Andreas Papandreou for her contributions to Greek drama.

[7] As a pioneer in the field of modern versions of the classics: in films, plays, and opera, McDonald has published much work on the subjects.

Athol Fugard in Ireland (1999); Trojan Women (2000 and 2009); Euripides’ Children of Heracles (2003); Sophocles’ Oedipus Tyrannus and Oedipus at Colonus (2003-4); Euripides’ Hecuba, 2005, Sophocles’ Ajax, 2006, Euripides’ Iphigenia at Aulis and Bacchae, 2006; and 2007 and 2009; Euripides’ Phoenician Women, (2009); Medea (2007); Seneca’s Thyestes (2008) and with J. Michael Walton Aeschylus’ Oresteia and Aristophanes’ Frogs (2007); Helen (2008); versions and other works : The Trojan Women (2000); Medea, Queen of Colchester (2003), The Ally Way (2004); …and then he met a woodcutter (San Diego Critics’ Circle: Best New Play of 2005), Medea: The Beginning, performed with Athol Fugard’s Jason: The End (2006); The Last Class (2007); Fires in Heaven (2009), and A Taste for Blood (2010).