Doodlebugs’ care in the community
COINCIDING with their London run with Tabard Theatre, Paradise Lodge’s dysfunctional ukulele musical duo ‘The Doodlebugs’ are performing in local nursing homes.
They played at Chiswick Nursing Home on Monday and have gigs at Hammersmith Dementia Day Centre today (Wednesday) and Acton Care Home on Monday.
During their acclaimed run at the Edinburgh Fringe, the duo raised more than £1,000 for Alzheimer Scotland.
This charitable partnership was particularly fitting as the production is a musical comedy based on writer Steve Cooper’s experience of caring for his mother-in-law as she lived with dementia.
Residents at homes such as these would not normally get access to the vast array of shows on the London theatre landscape and it is important to Cooper that he is able to connect with local communities, particularly given the subject matter of Paradise Lodge.
Singing in care homes is his way of giving something back.
This show is a relatable and compassionate piece that creates an immediate connection with anyone who has had experience with dementia
Told in a series of touching flashbacks and some comic songs from the wartime era, Paradise Lodge transports Vi, Ronnie and the audience back to a time when they had all their lives in front of them – to when they thought they would live forever.
Trying to make sense of dementia and its impact on those affected, Paradise Lodge explores the nature of identity, reality and loss, with a bit of Beyoncé’s Single Ladies thrown in for good measure.
A hilarious, heart-wrenching production, it will have audiences laughing, crying and singing their hearts out.
You can catch the duo at Tabard Theatre, Bath Road, Chiswick, until Thursday October 24 (not Mondays or Sundays), at 7:30pm.
Tickets cost £20. For more details, visit tabardtheatre.co.uk