[Now Playing] Phamaly Theatre Company’s “Taking Leave”

Elder-care is difficult for all families; whether a parent’s body stops working or his or mind begins to go, the unspoken rules that govern family relationships — and the relationships themselves  —are thrown into question. Phamaly Theatre Company has partnered with the Alzheimer’s Association Colorado Chapter for a thought-provoking and moving staging of Nagle Jackson’s Taking Leave. In this play, which premiered at the DCPA in 1998, a family grapples with their father’s experience of Alzheimer’s and his unpredictable loss of bearings. The father Eliot Pryne is played by two actors—Jamie Lewis who delivers asides to the audience and represents Eliot’s consciousness and David J. Wright who interacts with his daughters and care-worker Mrs. Fleming (played by Jodi Hogle) increasingly erratically.

Eliot is a Renaissance and Shakespeare scholar with a special interest in King Lear, but the analogues to King Lear run deeper than his scholarly pursuits. Like Lear, Eliot has three daughters  trying to determine their relationship and commitment to their father as he gradually loses his mind. The eldest sister Alma, played by Twanna Latrice Hill, is torn between her father’s need for care and the demands of her television acting career; her younger sister Liz, played by Laurice Quinn, wants to prolong her father’s home-care so that her future inheritance is not totally depleted in the costs of assisted living. Finally, Kirsten Lang confidently plays Cordelia, Eliot’s youngest and most-favored daughter who has been aimlessly traveling through Europe on a wave of addictions.

In true Phamaly fashion, the play’s themes and diverse cast draw attention to the gifts that individuals have to share, regardless of diagnoses or disabilities. While this play will strongly interest people approaching old age or people with aging parents, its message of acceptance is for everyone.  Cordelia challenges her sisters not only to accept their father’s state, but also to celebrate the “new place” he has entered as a growing and changing human. This radical inclusion and collaboration resonates with Phamaly’s vision “that every individual with a disability has the opportunity to participate in all aspects of high-quality performing arts.”

Taking Leave runs at The Jones at the DCPA until April 17. Phamaly Theatre Company will host special inclusive performances including a Sensory-Friendly night for audience members with autism, Down syndrome, and sensory-processing disorders on April 8 and an audio-description and ASL performance on April 10. The Alzheimer’s Association sponsors a talkback after each performance.