Show explores the world of dementia
A performance for people living with dementia, their loved ones and those who care for them will be at Stirling’s Macrobert Arts Centre on July 6.
Created and directed by Magdalena Schamberger, the original idea for Curious Shoes came from her observation that many people, particularly those in more advanced stages of dementia, view the world from the floor up and that their first encounter with a person is with their shoes.
The more extraordinary the shoes, the more their curiosity seemed to be sparked and their interest awakened.
Schamberger wanted to create and develop a quality performance that explored this insight into the world of dementia, a piece that could inspire and ignite that creative spark among its audience.
Curious Shoes is a performance involving dance, music and song that provides an opportunity for somebody with dementia to share the experience of seeing a live performance in a relaxed setting. It provides a mix of structured scenes and invitations from the performers to engage with the audience.
With no pressure to follow a storyline, there is a loose connection through the scenes and images should its audience wish to find one.
After a successful pilot in 2017 in theatres and care homes including Platform (Glasgow), The Barn (Banchory) and the Beacon Arts Centre (Greenock) and Luminate, Scotland’s Creative Ageing Festival, Curious Shoes was seen by 313 people living with dementia and reached a total of 459 audience members including family members, friends and carers as well as industry professionals.
The capacity for each performance is capped at 20 to enable the performers to connect with each audience member.
The show will be performed by original actor/musicians Tim Licata and Nicolette Macleod and will be joined by new performers, dancer Christina Liddell and actor Colin Moncrief.