The Fish Bowl: Managing Dementia ~ Adelaide Fringe 2023 Review

[THEATRE AND PHYSICAL THEATRE/Immersive ~ SA] The Studio at Holden Street Theatres, Tue 7 Mar, 2023. The Fish Bowl is part seminar, part theatre. While daring to entertain on a touchy subject like dementia it also provides a lot of advice on how to cope with, and treat, people with dementia. Set in an aged care nursing home the players switch between being patients and carers, often quickly shifting from troubled /troublesome patient to narrator in the same scene. It’s a very effective technique that holds audience attention and attempts to explain the patient’s behaviour - why the patient might be all of a sudden roaming around the room in an agitated state, or affectionately addressing a soft toy as their spouse. There is a tragi-comic aspect to dementia that is also on show here. As the old cliché says, you don’t know whether to laugh or cry, and often either response is appropriate.  But people in the caring role have to get past that and come up with strategies to deal with the situation at hand. Fish Bowl shows us several delightful examples: a scene encouraging a patient to recite a long poem while getting them ready for bed is quite beautiful and amazing to watch. There are also moments of extreme, violent anger that are quite scary. Such are the swings and roundabouts of dealing with dementia – childlike joy one moment: explosive fury the next. Full marks to The Fish Bowl Theatre for delving into this challenging territory. It’s instructive and enjoyable theatre that attempts to cast somewhat of a positive light on how one can cope with people who have dementia; how one can build relationships across the cognitive disconnect.  I commend them for that but the sooner a cure is found for this dreadful dignity sapping disease the better. Director: Steph Daughtry Writer: Matthew Barker Performers: Matthew Barker & Evie Leonard. 4 stars Michael Coghlan The Fish Bowl continues at The Studio at Holden Street Theatres at various times until Sun 19 Mar. Book at FringeTIX and adelaidefringe.com.au. Click HERE to purchase your tickets. #TheClothesline #ADLFringe