Forget Me Not The Alzheimer's Whodunnit

Rating:

Company: Rob Gee

Genre: Play - Comedy

Venue: 21 - MTYP Mainstage

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How's this for a twist on the whodunit? British standup poet Rob Gee makes the unusual choice to set his in an Alzheimer's ward, which leads to all kinds of comic fodder: if your memory is sketchy to begin with, how on earth can you remember if you've accidently bludgeoned someone to death with a paperweight?

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Gee is an engaging, goofy performer, who slips effortlessly into multiple characters (at least nine, by my count)patients, ward nurses with the "interpersonal skills of fighting gerbils," and one metaphor-mixing detective. The writing is smart, witty, and razor-sharp.

But what's most impressive is the way Gee has used the whodunit trope as a way to expose the real-life indignities of living with late-stage dementia. Gee knows what he's talking about: he worked as a registered nurse in psychiatric units for over a decade. He's seen first-hand how "people with the worst memories tend to be the most forgotten about."

Part social commentary, partblack comedy, and part Clue, Forget Me Notis the second in a trilogy of shows Gee's written about mental health.Heunderstands that the best way to draw attention to an issue is make it as funny and heartbreaking as hell.