School of Health in Social Science at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe 2017

The real life experiences of people living with early onset dementia have been used to produce a new theatre performance which takes a radical look at the condition and the affect it has on relationships.

The Ties That Bind, by Skimstone Arts, uses an uplifting combination of performance, original music and striking visuals to tell the story of Paul, a sound engineer whose world is changing as the early stages of dementia begin to affect his personal relationships.

The multidisciplinary performance explores the effect the early stages of dementia can have on people’s friendships and relationships, and asks what it is that binds us to family and other people. What new stories can we weave that enable us to release old friends and join new ones?

The work was commissioned by Edinburgh University and is informed by a research project funded by the Economic and Social Research Council and in partnership with the Mental Health Foundation and Alzheimer Scotland.

“This piece won’t be what people might expect to see when they attend a performance about dementia. The commissioned work by Edinburgh University is based on key findings from a research project about changes in social groupings, along with stories collected from those who have personal experience of living with the condition.

“The Ties That Bind weaves in elements of what we learnt through our conversations and research, as we follow Paul’s story in what is an ultimately uplifting piece of narrative theatre.”

Claire Webster Saaremets

The Ties That Bind is on at Whitespace 76, 76 East Crosscauseway, EH8 9HQ, from 3-9 August and 21-23 August.

Performances start at 3.20pm and tickets are available now from the Edinburgh Festival Fringe box office

www.skimstone.org.uk

Psychologist  Matthias Schwannauer  has looked at the history of mental disorder and found examples of madness that are genuinely seen as incredulous, shocking and bewildering, but also common instances of labels of mental disorders being used to control what was deemed as unacceptable, dangerous or otherwise challenging. If what is identified, diagnosed and treated as mental illness is based on no more than varying societal and cultural anchor points, is anyone ever truly mentally ‘ill’?

August 16, 2017 @ 8:20 pm – 9:20 pm

Cabaret of Dangerous Ideas

New Town Theatre Freemasons Hall 96 George St, Edinburgh EH2 3DH

£9 (£7 concession)

The Cabaret of Dangerous ideas – part of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe- is designed as an informal platform for academics and researchers to engage for other hot topics of debate, discussion and discourse.  Check out their programme of shows featuring University of Edinburgh staff here http://codi.beltanenetwork.org/about/  

Can you prove that acting can help you stop smoking? How do you measure touchy-feely things like compassion and relationships? The School of Health’s Dr Marisa de Andrade sets out to push academic boundaries and do the impossible- measure humanity!

Check back for Marisa’s interview on the University’s Festival Blog- Published this Monday 14th August

http://www.ed.ac.uk/events/festivals

Mental health problems often start during the teenage and early adult years and the stigma can be a devastating problem, stalling recovery. Building resilience is essential. Join novelist Alice Broadway, child psychiatrist, relief worker and writer Lynne Jones, and Visiting Researcher in Psychology at the University of Glasgow Louise Beattie, for a discussion about how writing, reading and storytelling could be a valuable means of aiding recovery. Chaired by Stella Chan from the University of Edinburgh.

Garden Theatre

Wed 16^th Aug 7.30-9.00pm

£12 (£10 concession)

The HarmonyChoir will perform on the 25th, which is the result of a research project

https://m.youtube.com/watch?feature=youtu.be&v=BxJjPCSRY_I