SPUR

This will encourage other arts groups and individuals to approach Hospitals and Seniors Residences for work.

From my understanding- from what I have experienced, and researched thus far, it is difficult for Hospitals and Senior Residences to find entertainment, performances, or activities for patients and patrons. And this is a big deal.

Without these programs, there is no reprieve from healing or transitional processes. There is no distraction from the constant focus on why the patients or patrons are there.

So, there is a constant search for this kind of work. Something to ease healing processes, and improve a person’s quality of life. How do we go about it?

In my mind, I break it down to one statement: See a need, fill a need. They need entertainment, possibly in the form of a performance, and we need- well,- to perform.

We don’t want to walk into this blindly, though. We can’t. We have been doing our homework so that we can cater these performances to each individual audience member. In order to do this, we have looked to such brilliant performance and research bases as clown-doctoring.

The great thing that I have learned about clown doctoring thus far is that they provide distraction and entertainment through being vulnerable with their patients.  Patients therefore focus on the clown’s inability to perform a certain task, as opposed to his or her own struggles. Patients may even go so far as to help the clowns with what they are failing at, to put them at ease. Pretty amazing, huh? By proxy, they can also ease their own struggles.

…Okay, so this isn’t terribly new to everyone. But I think that act of presenting a vulnerability to a patient is huge, and can ease the healing or transitional process a lot. If we can similarly present vulnerability through our work with the text, I think that we can create a similar sensation- By no means am I saying that we are the same as Clown Doctors. By no means could we ever replace the amazing things that they do. But we can certainly try something new, and provide a vulnerable experience, incorporating a new form of cultural stimulation for patients and senior residence members.

So, if you are looking for a reason to vote today, do it because you will be creating job opportunities for emerging youth artists, while solving the issue of finding entertainment in hospitals and senior residences.

You know you wanna: http://pep.si/hDkj1N

...And, of course, if you want to check out some amazing Clown-Doctor programs across Canada, check out some of these groups:

Fools For Health

http://web2.uwindsor.ca/fools_for_health/

Dr. Clown

http://drclown.ca/index_en.php

We’re Making Classical Work Accessible

I’m willing to hash out almost any amount of cash to see a good Shakespeare work. I almost cried this year when I found out that I wouldn’t have the funds to see The Tempest at Stratford. It is important that these works be seen, and made accessible to everyone- the sad reality is that staff have to be paid, and operating budgets must be accounted for.

This work is breaking down that barrier. Last summer we beat the monetary concern by making it accessible for subway fare. This spring, we are beating it again, by once again making our work free to the patrons and patients. We are also surpassing a new boundary- actually bringing it to those who are not in a healthy state to attend theatre venues.

Don’t get me wrong- a lot of theatre venues work very hard to make their stages and seating accessible by those who have a physical handicap. However, it’s not always possible to give this accessibility right away. It may take time to develop the finances, the programming, the blueprints etc.. There is also a plethora of specific personal medical reasons that may prevent a patron from attending theatre performances. The best thing that management can do, is stay on top of the building codes, and address each question as it comes.

So, our project surpasses this concern, by bringing the Bard to those who normally can not attend due to physical, or medical reasons. If you are looking for a reason to vote today, do it because we are breaking down the barriers for the Bard! http://pep.si/hDkj1N

It’s funny…the whole idea actually got started when one of the ensemble from SOTS went to the hospital for stitches (which were for an unrelated injury that happened the evening following the performance). Somebody saw the cbc news report and said to her “hey, they should bring that here!” You can check out that same report here:

http://www.cbc.ca/video/#/News/TV_Shows/Connect_with_Mark_Kelley/1305591601/ID=1574805807

 Some audiences may not get to do or see this again.

It is unfortunate to face, but it is a cold fact: some of the patrons who walk in to these hospitals and seniors residences will not leave.

                This past year I was given a very painful, and yet eye-opening experience. This event changed my motivation on this project from “Gee, this would be something cool to do,” to “If I don’t do this, I will regret it.” In November, I received a call from my father, telling me that my grandmother had suffered a severe heart attack. The odds of her surviving were very small. I rushed to the hospital to be with my family, and say our goodbyes.

               Needless to say, I was heartbroken. My grandmother and I had been very close; a lot of the work I had done on Shakespeare, I shared with her. She was a dancer in her time. She was well ahead of her time. She did not know very much about Shakespeare, but she loved to read (she essentially got a modern university education from the amount of reading and discussion that she did), and go to the theatre, so we explored classical text together. I actually went to her Senior Residence two days prior to the event to perform for some of her friends.

                When it came time to saying my goodbyes, I found myself speaking every piece of classical text that I had memorized. It felt like the best thing to do. I didn’t know if she could hear me or not- that was a large conflict for me at the time. It felt like talking to a breathing brick wall- but I wanted to feel connected to her. So, I wanted her last day to be of something that we had shared together. Above all, I wanted her to feel comfortable, and happy.

That night, my grandmother passed away, quietly. We received the call before going to bed.

Looking back, I feel absolutely blessed to have had that moment with her. The likelihood of her actually having heard or recognized me is slim to nil, but it was important that I put it out there. Conscious or not, I know she would have appreciated it. She was very fortunate to have had such a full life, and we were fortunate to have shared that with her, right up to her last hours.

Some of the hospital patients and senior residence members won’t leave the facilities. Some of them are regular theatre-goers, some of them have never seen theatre in their lives. I hope that by sharing a live event such as this, we can give those patients and patrons an experience of community and connection in a way that may either be warm and familiar, or new and exciting. Although that may not solve the issues they face, and although the issues they face may be inevitable, this can still offer a reprieve from the despair that they may feel over the situation. And when it comes to quality of life, a little joy could mean all of the difference between “I can’t do this,” and “Let’s do this.”

So, if you are looking for a reason to vote today, do it because some audiences may not get to do or see this ever again, and it will enrich their quality of life.

http://pep.si/hDkj1N

Hey Everyone!

This is indeed the first post for the SOTMSC blog, and what a time to get started.

First off, I want to thank all of our long-distance supporters involved in the SOTS process. Thanks to your viewing and interest, we went viral and hit four mediums of news, letting people know who we are and why we’re here. What an entrance.

  Now, we are using that momentum to bring on our next project, entitled “Shakespeare’s Briefs”. For full project description, I invite you to check it out on the Pepsi Grant website: http://www.refresheverything.ca/shakespeareinhospitals

…Oh yeah.  About that:

 For those of you who don't know, we have entered the Pepsi Refresh Grant for funding for bringing Shakespeare to those who are not physically capable. In short, we want to bring the bard to hospitals and seniors residences! We are in the running for $10,000. They pick the winners by letting the public vote on these ideas.

I will be making a post for each day you can vote, listing a reason why you should vote for us- Asides from the fact that we are funny, good looking, have great personalities... 

Reason #55: It’s a random act of kindness.

They help make the world go ‘round. So please, help us with our random act, by doing one of your own and voting!

…for those of you who don’t know how:

1) go to http://www.refresheverything.ca/

2) go to the bottom of the window and hit "Join Refresh Everything"

3)Fill in the sign up info (name, age, valid email address, password, retyped password, prove you're not a robot, click 'done')

  4)Search the idea "I want to bring Shakespeare to those who can't physically attend the theatre". Go to our profile page.

5)Hit "vote for this idea"

6) Repeat each day

7)TELL YOUR FRIENDS TO DO THE SAME!

A big Thank You once again to our supporters. We couldn’t do this without you!

Victoria