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Edinburgh Reporter
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Edinburgh Reporter
Discussion on dementia stories to follow UK premiere of Lost Lear at Traverse on Sunday evening
A special discussion around telling stories of dementia will follow the first UK performance of Lost Lear at The Traverse on Sunday 27 July. The new show by award-winning Irish theatre maker Dan Colley is a moving look at living with dementia, told through the familiar lens of Shakespeare's characters Following the preview performance on the 27 July, Dan will be joined by Alex Howard and Gus Harrower from Capital Theatres dementia-friendly programme and Magdalena Schamberger, who specialises in creating theatre for those with dementia Lost Lear will run on the main stage at the Traverse from 2 to 24 August Following its first-ever UK performance at Traverse Festival on 27 July, the hit Irish theatre show Lost Lear will host a special public discussion around telling the complex stories of dementia in theatre. The discussion will feature Lost Lear's award-winning creator Dan Colley, who will be joined by Alex Howard and Gus Harrower from Capital Theatres Edinburgh's dementia-friendly programme and Scotland-based theatre-maker and consultant Magdalene Schamberger, who has over 20 years experience working with people living with dementia. The discussion will look at the initial creation of Lost Lear and its collaborations between Dementia Carers Campaign Network and the Alzheimer's Society of Ireland. The play itself, a loose adaptation of Shakespeare's King Lear, examines how we know ourselves and who we are to each other, amidst the complexities of dementia. The discussion will also be a chance for audiences to talk about how the show has resonated with their own experiences of living with and caring for those with dementia, with an invite being sent out to people from local dementia communities. 'Dan collaborated with the Dementia Carers Campaign Network (DCCN), an advocacy group supported by The Alzheimer Society of Ireland, in the early days of writing this play.' says Judy Williams, Advocacy, Engagement and Participation Officer for The Alzheimer Society of Ireland. 'Through focus groups, carers shared their experiences, shaping Dan's approach to the play. For the DCCN, the project was compelling, inclusive, and in some ways, healing. It also provided new opportunities for carers to share their stories, while raising awareness about the challenges they face. We were very grateful for the opportunity to have this engagement with Dan and Matt, and we wish them all the best at the Edinburgh Fringe 2025. We hope as many people as possible have the opportunity to see this sophisticated and thought-provoking play.' 'Lost Lear is a captivating journey, from an energetic and rambunctious beginning to the poignant and gentle end, it portrays the bewilderment of someone who wants to care, trying to have the shared experience with the person living with dementia, struggling and sometimes failing.' says Susan Crampton of the Dementia Carers Campaign Network. 'I am delighted to hear that Lost Lear is going to Edinburgh and many more people will have the opportunity to see it for the first time – or again.' Lost Lear is a moving and darkly comic remix of Shakespeare's play told from the point of view of Joy, a person with dementia, who is living in an old memory of rehearsing King Lear. Joy's delicately maintained reality is upended by the arrival of her estranged son who, being cast as Cordelia, must find a way to speak his piece from within the limited role he's given. Using puppetry, projection and live video effects, the audience are landed in Joy's world as layers of her past and present, fiction and reality, overlap and distort. Lost Lear is a thought provoking meditation on theatre, artifice and the possibility of communicating across the chasms between us. Following rave reviews for its Irish premiere, where it picked up nominations for Best New Play, Audience Choice, Best AV Design and Best Supporting Actor at the Irish Times Theatre Awards, Lost Lear will have its UK premiere at the Traverse Festival in Edinburgh this August. Following its Fringe run, Lost Lear will tour to North America in Autumn 2025. Co-produced by Mermaid Arts Centre and Riverbank Arts Centre. Funded by the Arts Council of Ireland and supported by Fishamble's New Play Clinic. Part of the 2025 Culture Ireland Edinburgh Showcase. Traverse 1 Preview 27 July 7.30pm and 2 August 9.30pm Then 3 – 24 August (not Mondays) Times vary. Run time: 1 hr 15 min Tickets: £5 – £25 Like this: Like Related
Irish Independent
06-05-2025
- General
- Irish Independent
See photos as Alzheimer's Tea Day comes to Co Wicklow
As always, St Killian House Family Resource Centre was the venue for the event in Greystones once more, as the town's Tea Day kicked off nice and early at 10am. Over in Christ Church, in Delgany, there was a great turnout for the charity fundraiser, which began at 10.30am where all present indulged in some sweet treats, tea and coffee, and enjoyed the positive vibes, which is what the event is all about – taking a pause and enjoying the company. Meanwhile, clients, volunteers and community members enjoyed a fantastic day at St John's Caring Centre in Hacketstown, when it hosted a coffee morning that raised nearly €500 for the Alzheimer Society of Ireland. With people coming and going throughout the morning, the joyous event saw attendees enjoy a range of cakes baked by centre volunteers to go with their teas and coffees. Centre manager Sheila Whelan, who oversees St John's care for the elderly, providing meals three days a week and a colossal number of meals on wheels to people in Hacketstown and its surrounding areas, said she was delighted with the funds raised. 'We raised nearly €500, which was brilliant for one morning,' she said. 'We just advertised it locally, and the local community came out in force, and it wasn't necessarily just clients at the centre – anyone and everyone was welcome. The coffee, tea and cakes were done by the volunteers here at the centre, and we had a beautiful day for it. Just a great morning altogether.' The funds raised from Tea Day go towards the many services The Alzheimer Society of Ireland provides to those living with dementia.
Dublin Live
02-05-2025
- Health
- Dublin Live
Dublin couple 'living our best life' despite husband's dementia diagnosis
Our community members are treated to special offers, promotions and adverts from us and our partners. You can check out at any time. More info At just 52, Wayne Baron was given the devastating news that he has just five to seven years left to live. Six years ago, he was diagnosed with early-onset Lewy's body dementia. Lewy bodies are abnormal clumps of protein that form in nerve cells in the brain and can cause problems with thinking, movement, behaviour and mood. It shares characteristics with Alzheimer's disease and Parkinson's disease and accounts for 10-25% of dementia cases in Ireland. Wayne's wife Siobhan Baron said the diagnosis was 'heartbreaking' for the couple and their four children, who live in Lucan, Dublin. But they want to make the most out of the time they have left with him and spread awareness for early-onset dementia. Speaking to the Irish Mirror ahead of Alzheimer's Tea Day, Siobhan said: 'We were supposed to retire together. We were supposed to live our best lives together. 'We did amazing for our kiddos and we were supposed to travel the world, visiting them or seeing them and seeing our grandkids. And we'll never see that well, I will hopefully, but Wayne won't and that's our reality. We won't grow old together. 'He won't walk his three daughters down the aisle, not unless they get moving in the next year or two. Wayne won't remember or see his grandchildren. But there are worse things happening in the world, and we're just one day at a time, and we're living our best life.' Wayne was diagnosed with Lewy body dementia in 2018 after a year of tests. He initially went to his GP after experiencing auditory hallucinations and becoming unsteady on his feet. Doctors sent him for psychiatric care, believing these hallucinations might be caused by schizophrenia. Six months after this diagnosis, Wayne had to leave his beloved role as head chef at Bijou Restaurant in Dublin's Rathgar. Siobhan is now a full-time carer for her husband but also works part-time as a matron at The King's Hospital to keep their family afloat. She said she didn't have any choice but to just get on with things and added: 'I went through a few of the grieving stages because it is a grief. With dementia, there are two goodbyes, the goodbyes we're going through, and then the one that Wayne goes through, where we lose him twice. His cognitive is still very good. He can still hold a conversation, he walks with a stick and that's the only tell-tale sign, really. 'Wayne never got angry, he was very accepting. If it wasn't him, it was somebody else. There's no cure, he can't take the magic potion. What can we do? We have to still live. 'And that's what we decided, we had children, we couldn't fall apart.' While Siobhan, Wayne and their family try to remain positive, she admits it has been extremely difficult. Her saving grace has been The Alzheimer Society of Ireland's under 65's Carers Group, which helped her through the darkest of times. She said: 'I think I possibly would have been hospitalized myself only for the support group and I just made a phone call. 'I was probably a basket case, and I don't remember the first phone call…but they're walking angels.' Siobhan says she wishes more people had patience for those diagnosed with dementia, and for family and friends to keep them in their lives like they always have. She added: 'Just because they're sick doesn't mean they don't exist. 'We've seen it with friends who had cancer, people rally in a different way. With dementia, it frightens people. People talk to Wayne as if he has a hearing problem. 'He can hold a conversation, no problem, he may be a little slow but he'll do one one-on-one. People hear dementia and they presume the person isn't capable of having a conversation. Just don't treat them as if they're stupid.' Siobhan was speaking ahead of the Alzheimer Society of Ireland's Tea Day. Those who would like to host their own Tea Day during the month of May can register at to receive a free organiser's toolkit. Funds raised support critical services like the Alzheimer's National Helpline, Daycare programmes, home care, family carer training, social clubs and Alzheimer's cafes. Join our Dublin Live breaking news service on WhatsApp. Click this link to receive your daily dose of Dublin Live content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice. For all the latest news from Dublin and surrounding areas visit our homepage.
Irish Daily Mirror
01-05-2025
- Health
- Irish Daily Mirror
Dublin family makes the most of time as father battles early-onset dementia
At just 52 years old, talented chef and loving father Wayne Baron was given the devastating news that he has just five to seven years left to live. Six years ago, he was diagnosed with early-onset Lewy's body dementia. Lewy bodies are abnormal clumps of protein that form in nerve cells in the brain and can cause problems with thinking, movement, behavior, and mood. It shares characteristics with both Alzheimer's disease and Parkinson's disease and accounts for 10-25% of dementia cases in Ireland. Wayne's wife Siobhan Baron said the diagnosis was 'heartbreaking' for the couple and their four children, who live in Lucan, Dublin. But they want to make the most out of the time they have left with him and spread awareness for early-onset dementia. Speaking to the Irish Mirror ahead of Alzheimer's Tea Day, Siobhan said: 'We were supposed to retire together, we were supposed to live our best lives. We did amazing for our kiddos, and we were supposed to travel the world, visiting them or seeing them and seeing our grandkids. 'And we'll never see that well, I will hopefully, but Wayne won't and that's our reality. We won't grow old together. He won't walk his three daughters down the aisle, not unless they get moving in the next year or two, he won't remember or see his grandchildren. 'But there are worse things happening in the world, and we're just one day at a time, and we're living our best life.' Wayne was diagnosed with Lewy body dementia in 2018 after a long year of tests. He initially went to his GP after experiencing auditory hallucinations and becoming unsteady on his feet. Doctors sent him for psychiatric care, believing these hallucinations might be caused by schizophrenia. But after ruling out several conditions, the family of six received the devastating news that he had early-onset dementia. Six months after this diagnosis, Wayne had to leave his beloved role as Head Chef at Bijou Restaurant in Dublin's Rathgar. Siobhan is now a full-time carer for her husband but also works part-time as a matron at The King's Hospital to keep their family afloat. The mother-of-four said she didn't have any choice but to just get on with things. She continued: 'I went through a few of the grieving stages because it is a grief. With dementia, there are two goodbyes, the goodbyes we're going through, and then the one that Wayne goes through, where we lose him twice. 'His cognitive is still very good. He can still hold a conversation, he walks with a stick, and that's the only telltale sign, really. Wayne never got angry, he was very accepting. If it wasn't him, it was somebody else. 'There's no cure, he can't take the magic potion. What can we do? We have to still live. And that's what we decided, we had children, we couldn't fall apart.' While Siobhan and her family try to remain positive, she admits it has been extremely difficult. Her saving grace has been The Alzheimer Society of Ireland's under 65's Carers Group, which helped her through the darkest of times. She said: 'I think I possibly would have been hospitalized myself only for the support group, and I just made a phone call. 'I was probably a basket case, and I don't remember the first phone call… but they're walking angels.' The carer says she wishes more people had patience for those diagnosed with dementia, and for family and friends to keep them in their lives like they always have. Siobhan continued: 'Just because they're sick doesn't mean they don't exist. We've seen it with friends who had cancer, people rally in a different way. With dementia, it frightens people. People talk to Wayne as if he has a hearing problem. 'He can hold a conversation, no problem, he may be a little slow but he'll do one one-on-one. People hear dementia and they presume they aren't capable of having a conversation. Just don't treat them as if they're stupid.' Siobhan was speaking ahead of the Alzheimer Society of Ireland's Tea Day. Those who would like to host their own Tea Day in the month of May can register at to receive a free organiser's toolkit. Funds raised support critical services like the Alzheimer's National Helpline, Daycare programs, home care, family carer training, social clubs, and Alzheimer's cafes.
