New play premieres in Edinburgh in November
A mother’s experience of caring for her severely disabled son is the basis for a new play which will be performed next month at the Scottish Storytelling Centre.
Caring, by Rhona McAdam from Edinburgh, describes the daily struggle of living with a disabled teenager, and is based on her own life story.
The play, performed by Citadel Arts Group on November 3 and 4, with support from the Lottery, will be free, with a special invitation extended to carers’ groups in the city.
Rhona McAdam, who lives in Colinton, says: “It’s a realistic view of a mother caring for her teenage son.
“She is finding it tougher to care for him because he has a lot of physical care needs. Now he’s getting older she is maybe mothering him too much. In the play it’s his fifteenth birthday and she’s telling him he can’t have another beer.”
According to charity Care for Carers there are now more than 800,000 adult carers in Scotland, and 82 per cent have no time for respite or breaks.
Rhona based the character of Joey on her own son Ruairidh, who had Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy and died this year, aged 29, shortly after she finished writing the play.
Boys and young men with Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy lack a protein which causes progressive muscle weakness, leading to respiratory problems and difficulty swallowing.
The writer hopes others will be able to relate to the story.
“These are characters and these are their struggles – but it could be any teenager or any mother.
“All Joey wants to do is play on his X Box For Joey it’s a world where he can do things, run, and fight.”
In the play the character of the mother struggles to look after herself as well as her son, but comes to realise she needs to find a way to do this.
“I tried to make it realistic. Mum is no saint – in fact neither Mum or Joey is angelic. They are both a bit grumpy with each other. Mum is tired and a bit frustrated and Joey resents his mum for being annoyed.
“I wanted to show the reality of caring – but also that normal life goes on – whatever difficulties you face.”
Rhona McAdam was one of the writers of Leithers One Family, the play based on a family of Leithers, which Citadel Arts Group created and staged online during lockdown.
A version of the play Leithers Live, was performed at Custom House, Leith in June.
As well as losing her son this year Rhona also lost her husband Iain, who died during lockdown in December 2021. Writing the play and working with Citadel has given her a welcome focus.
She says: “I have written short stories before but I have really enjoyed being part of the collaborative process and working with actors and directors.”
Caring, which will be directed by Mark Kydd, will be staged at the Storytelling Centre on November 3 and 4.
The part of Mum will be played by Laverne Edmonds, Joey will be played by Fraser Allan Hogg, while Dale McQueen will take the supporting roles.
Liz Hare, director of the Citadel Arts Group says: “It will be a very welcome return to the Storytelling Centre for us. Although we are usually associated with Leith, the group originally performed at the Storytelling Centre. It’s a beautiful theatre space and we’re delighted to be going back.
“We’ve done a lot of work with Care for Carers and the Carers’ Group from the Eric Liddell Centre running creative writing workshops and Rhona’s play fits in really well with that. We did an early run through of the play with Edinburgh carers and they gave feedback and suggestions to help with the development of the script.”
Erica Whitaker Wallis, of Care for Carers said: “Across Scotland, there were an estimated 700,000 to 800,000 unpaid carers before the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Survey work from Scottish Government in September 2020 suggests the number of adult carers had grown to around 839,000. As a result of the pandemic 90 per cent of carers are spending more time caring, with 82 per cent having had no access to respite or breaks from caring.
“It is therefore more important than ever that we continue to shine a light on the vital contribution that unpaid carers make to our society.
As an organisation we work alongside community partners to provide carers with access to short break opportunities which this year has involved providing drama workshops with Citadel Arts.
“For a carer, just a few hours break away from their caring role can make a big difference to their wellbeing which is why we view these partnerships as so important.”
The project received funding from the National Lottery Community Fund.
Director Mark Kydd said: “I think people will enjoy the play. In spite of the seriousness of the subject matter it’s surprising, it’s funny and it’s playful.
“Because the character Joey loves gaming he wants to be a superhero of his own story and that adds a fantasy element to the narrative.”
Caring, by Rhona McAdam, will be performed at the Scottish Storytelling Centre, High Street, Edinburgh on November 3 and 4, with a matinee on November 4
Thursday 3 November, 7pm
Friday 4 November, 4pm and 7pm
There will be a Q and A after the matinee on November 4 with Erica Whittaker Wallis from Care for Carers.
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