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
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Western University researchers unlock potential 'cure' for ALS
New research out of London, Ont.'s Western University is shedding light on a potential cure for ALS, in which the targeting of the interaction between two proteins can halt or fully reverse the disease's progression.
Police release 3D images of young child found in an Ontario river two years ago
Police have released a three-dimensional image of a young child whose remains were discovered in the Grand River in Dunnville, Ont. almost two years ago.
A child killer legally changed his name in B.C. The province is trying to stop that from happening again
The BC NDP have tabled legislation aimed at stopping people who have committed certain heinous acts from changing their names.
Collapsed Baltimore bridge span comes down with a boom after crews set off chain of explosives
Crews conducted a controlled demolition Monday to break down the largest remaining span of the collapsed Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore.
CN Railway suspends service on some networks due to wildfires
Canadian National (CN) Railway suspended service on its network between Fort St. John and Fort Nelson in B.C. and north of High Level, Alta., due to wildfires, the company said on Monday.
Kamala Harris drops F-bomb during White House live-stream
U.S. Vice-President Kamala Harris used a profanity on Monday while offering advice to young Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders about how to break through barriers.
Security video caught admitted serial killer disposing of bodies in Winnipeg garbage bins
Security video caught admitted serial killer Jeremy Skibicki on multiple late-night outings, disposing of body parts in nearby garbage bins and dumpsters in the middle of the night.
Mortgage companies could intensify the next recession, U.S. officials warn
U.S. officials worry the next recession could be intensified by a cascading series of failures in the mortgage industry caused by crashing home prices, frozen financial markets and soaring delinquencies.
What Michael Cohen said on the stand in Trump hush money case
The star prosecution witness in Donald Trump's hush money trial took the stand Monday with testimony that could help shape the outcome of the first criminal case against an American president.