The story of a family dealing with dementia, love, and loss takes to the stage at the Kiwanis Theatre next month.
Remember, Maggy? is written by Sarnia mother/son duo Carol Anne and Matt Murray about two sisters, widowed housewife Kate and pill-popping actress Maggy, portrayed by Lisa Franks and Robyn Brady; their ailing but sharp-tongued Irish mother Niamh, played by Gina Paradis; and Kate’s friend Irene, played by JC Wright as the four women deal with love, loss, and grief.
Director Dan White says while Alzheimer’s is a theme throughout the show, the primary focus is family.
“It’s about love and acceptance and forgiving and letting go and all of those things family are about. The girls do a beautiful job of it.”
White says he’s tallied up all of the hours put into the show and figures between the four cast members and 11 crew, they will have invested roughly 1500 hours of work by the time the final curtain falls.
Tara Seney, Public Education Manager at the Alzheimer Society of Chatham-Kent attended a rehearsal in December to discuss various issues about dementia with the cast, including behaviours associated with the disease and caregiver fatigue.
“Just so that they knew they weren’t doing anything that would be uncharacteristic either as a caregiver or as somebody afflicted with the disease,” White explains. “This is really about telling that story as authentically as possible, and them understanding how to tell a very tragic story in many ways, because the disease robs you of so much, and tell it beautifully and with passion and compassion.”
There will be dementia information pamphlets and donation boxes in the Kiwanis Theatre lobby at each performance in support of the programs and services offered by the Alzheimer Society of Chatham-Kent.
Remember, Maggy? is Theatre Kent’s entry into the Western Ontario Drama League (WODL) annual festival with an adjudicator on hand for opening night.
The show runs February 10th and 11th at the Kiwanis Theatre in Chatham. Tickets can be purchased through the Chatham Cultural Centre box office or online at www.cktickets.com.
