Local theatre collective The Shrinking Violets is set to stage Matthew Seager’s play In Other Words at The Theatre Next Door this February – and, if your life has been touched by dementia, the producers would like to hear your story.
Featuring Jes Camilleri and Denise Mulholland and directed by Chiara Hyzler, In Other Words follows Arthur and Jane, whose love story has blossomed since they first met – or ‘the incident’, as they call it now. But times, and their minds, have changed. Taking an intimate, humorous and deeply moving journey in and out of their memories of married life to the music of Frank Sinatra, this bittersweet and poignant play explores the cruelty of Alzheimer’s disease and the transformative power of music in our lives.
Produced with the collaboration of the Malta Dementia Society, the project sheds light on the experience of living with dementia, both from the perspectives of someone with dementia and their loved ones. While music is an important element of the play, enhanced by original soundscapes by Matteo Depares, The Shrinking Violets also hope to collect the real-life stories of living with dementia in any capacity – from those recently diagnosed to those who have lived with the disease long-term; from family members of someone with dementia to carers. These stories will then feature –creatively and completely anonymously – in the wider show experience. To submit a story to the project, please send it via email to shrinkingvioletsmalta@gmail.com.
“The Malta Dementia Society is proud to partner with The Shrinking Violets in this endeavour, which will boost the Society’s work towards raising awareness about the challenges that dementia presents to those individuals living with it and to those who care for them, and our efforts to make dementia a top health and social priority,” says Prof Charles Scerri, Chairperson at the Malta Dementia Society.
“In Other Words explores the challenges that dementia has on those diagnosed early in life and its impact on family relationships. Sharing lived events and experiences by individuals living with dementia and those who care, through drama and storytelling, can provide an innovative way by which dementia can be normalised and stigma towards these people reduced. The portrayal of dementia in In Other Words is well-researched and will surely be appreciated by audiences, particularly those who are currently living the dementia experience,” he adds.
The Shrinking Violets production of In Other Words by Matthew Seager will play at The Theatre Next Door, Maghtab, on 3-5 and 10-12 February 2023. Tickets are available at https://tnd.com.mt/. Please send stories of living with dementia to shrinkingvioletsmalta@gmail.com.
