Seniors' Acting Lab Society hosting a production dealing with scams targeted at seniors

A Calgary acting company dedicated to sharing stories about aging is all set to present a production that explores the impact of an online scam on a senior and her family.

The play, which opens Thursday at cSpace, is called 'Old Mule' by Edmonton playwright Nicole Moeller. It features two women, a daughter named Gloria and her mother named Dot.

Trish Clark plays Dot, who is in the midst of an online scam by someone trying to befriend her. Gloria is trying to find out details of her mom's 'new friend', but has a hard time making headway.

"Dot does not feel she requires looking after, that's who the character is, she's like 'I can do it myself'," said Clark.

Clark has taken up acting in her retirement and says she pulled from her experiences as a caregiver for 45 years, remembering how her patients were vulnerable to scammers calling them on the phone.

"Because they're lonely," she said. "So the loneliness part I'm very familiar with from my work life, I worked in palliative care so that's people at the end of life, dealing with those issues and loneliness is a huge factor."

Gloria is played by Susan Carpenter and says this is her first leading role, thanks to the Seniors' Acting Lab Society (SALS).

"(My character is) a bit of a stick in the mud, I'm a bit of an A-type personality but I really at heart just want (my mom Dot) to be safe, I want to support her and I want her to live her best life," he said. "It's a fictional story, but it's universal, there's a lot of emotional truth to it so yes, there's definitely a lot in there that resonates with me."

BRINGING AWARENESS TO ONLINE FRAUD

The play is directed by Pat Chan. This is her second production by SALS she's worked on. Chan says there are times when the audience will laugh, but it also helps bring awareness to the fraud that seniors face.

"Because now it's a modern world," she said. "It's a different era and then sometimes with the internet and all that, seriously it's just a push of a button and things happen, you know bad things or good things happen right?"

SALS is hosting a panel of local experts on seniors and fraud after the matinee performance on January 27, 2024 that is made up of representatives from the Calgary Police Service, the Alberta Securities Commission, the Take Care, Be Aware program at the Calgary Seniors’ Resource Society, and the Better Business Bureau.

"We talk about scamming so who do we go to when we get scammed?" asked Chan. "I have a choice to approach this panel, I have a choice to approach this association, I have a choice to approach RCMP so I have a choice to know (what to do) if I'm scammed."

START A CONVERSATION

Clark likes the idea that the play can start a conversation that can help people, but she's also having fun in her post-retirement acting adventure.

"It's fun to meet with other people, it's fun to put another character onto the stage and interact with other people who are other characters," she said. "So it's totally fun and stressful and crazy and all those other kinds of things rolled in together."

Carpenter says the Old Mule is an entertaining way to deliver a powerful message.

"The message behind it is that you need to support your family, you need to get your arms around your family so that this can't happen to them," she said. "I mean I have my kids coming all the way up to friends who are older than me and I think it'll appeal to a wide range of ages."

Old Mule will run for five shows only at cSpace Studio Theatre (1721 29 Ave SW) from January 25-28, 2024. Tickets are $30 for adults and $25 for seniors and students and may be purchased through the Morpheus Theatre box office at tickets.morpheustheatre.ca