In this Next Avenue article, Debbie Miller provides a lively introduction to the phenomenon of “senior theatre” in the U.S. She focuses on two of the best known senior theatres: Stagebridge in San Francisco, and Theatre 55 in Minneapolis. Both examples reflect the variety of approaches to senior theatre and the ways in which older participants are helping to reshape traditional perceptions of aging and theatre-making.
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From engAGED’s e-blast:
“With virtual programming here to stay as a way to reach older adults who are reluctant or unable to attend in person, engAGED worked with Project Advisory Committee member and subcontracted partner Older Adults Technology Services (OATS) from AARP to develop our latest publication, “Implementing and Expanding Virtual Programming For Older Adults. ” The manual provides concrete tips, strategies and best practices to help organizations implement and enhance virtual programming.
Read Implementing and Expanding Virtual Programming For Older Adults to learn steps your organization can take when planning virtual programs, best practices for presenting virtual programs, and real world examples and tips from OATS Senior Planet centers. We hope that this publication will guide you through the new and exciting world of virtual programming!”
Silver Kite Intergenerational Theatre Company recruits diverse performers who represent a range of ages, races, genders, and experiences. Together, they create original theatre pieces that incorporate their personal stories. Performances are offered in community centers, schools and retirement communities, followed by conversations between the actors and audience members. This intergenerational theatre is a good example of a sustained program, one that is institutionalized rather than episodic. Each participant it treated as an equal contributor. The focus on personal stories and the intense collaborative work enable participants to gain deep insights into other performers’ lives and to generate cross-age friendships. The umbrella organization, Silver Kite Community Arts, aims “to bridge generation gaps through the arts and create an understanding of how we are connected through the lifespan.” It offers an excellent monthly podcast, “Silver Kite Tales,” that features a performer who offers his or her perspective on the Intergenerational Theatre Company.
From the Website:
The Winston Churchill Memorial Trust runs the Churchill Fellowships, a unique programme of overseas research grants. These support UK citizens from all parts of society to travel the world in search of innovative solutions for today’s most pressing problems.
From the website:
For 40-plus years, SAGE has worked tirelessly on behalf of LGBT older people. Building off the momentum of the Stonewall uprising and the emerging LGBT civil rights movement, a group of activists came together to ensure that LGBT older people could age with respect and dignity. SAGE formed a network of support for LGBT elders that’s still going and growing today. SAGE is more than just an organization. It’s a movement of loving, caring activists dedicated to providing advocacy, services, and support to older members of the LGBT community. LGBT elders fought— and still fight—for our rights. And we will never stop fighting for theirs.
From the Infopeople site:
Infopeople is part of the Califa Group, a nonprofit consortium of more than 230 libraries committed to unleashing the impact of libraries. Infopeople provides library staff quality continuing education opportunities that are tailored to library needs and developed by experienced library professionals.
Partners for Livable Communities (Partners) releases, “Arts Organizations and Public Health,” a guide to creating partnerships between art and health organizations. This primer was designed for the arts organization that wishes to initiate programming focused on local health issues, or create partnerships with health groups in order to best meet the needs of the community. Arts Organizations and Public Health identifies best practices of diverse arts organizations from around the United States to inform this work. The best practices can be used as references, and are cited throughout the publication to correlate with text.
From the toolkit:
Art can be a powerful activity for older adults. For many seniors art is a lifelong passion, for others, art is a hobby that they never had the time to pursue. No matter the situation, having an art program in your community can contribute substantially to the overall quality of life of your residents.
From the Age-Friendly NYC Site:
Started as a public-private partnership in 2007, NYAM’s Age-friendly NYC initiative has catalyzed hundreds of changes throughout the city. We have successfully created Age-friendly Neighborhoods, increased pedestrian safety, showed thousands of businesses how to become age-friendly, and improved transportation and access to recreational and cultural resources for the city’s older adults. Age-friendly NYC was awarded “Best Existing Age-Friendly Initiative in the World” by the International Federation on Aging in 2013 and has provided strategic assistance to more than 70 cities worldwide.
Teaching Artist, Susan Willerman, has been teaching “Writing From Life” at Morningside Retirement and Health Services in the Washington Heights neighborhood of NYC for 26 consecutive years. The class started as a program of Elders Share the Arts in 1994, and now continues as part of the Teachers & Writers Collaborative. When COVID-19 forced members to shelter at home, Susan and Tiana, one of the members, worked together to develop the most effective ways to continue the program online.