"You speak all your part at once, cues and all"

Reading Shakespeare with Alzheimer's Disease

Authors

  • Michael P. Jensen Contributing Editor, Shakespeare Newsletter

Keywords:

Twelfth Night, Alzheimer's, Performance Studies

Abstract

This is the story of reading an abridged script of Twelfth Night with a support group for early stage Alzheimer's disease patients. Though the reading was difficult in many ways, the result was a tremendous boost to the self-esteem of the participants because they did something perceived as difficult and worthwhile. The paper looks at why this was such an unexpected success, examines the readers and their challenges, and concludes with the recommendation that Shakespeare or other literature be studied as a therapy for people with Alzheimer's disease.

Author Biography

Michael P. Jensen, Contributing Editor, Shakespeare Newsletter

Mike Jensen is author of over 300 publications as sole or co-author, including Alzheimer's: The Answers You Need (Elder Books, 1997). He co-facilitated an early stage support group at the Stanford/VA Alzheimer's Research Center and contributed chapters to Shakespeare After Shakespeare: An Encyclopedia of the Bard in Mass Media and Popular Culture, two volumes (Greenwood Press, 2007); Shakespeare on Film, Television. and Radio: The Researcher's Guide (British Universities Film and Video Counsel, 2009), and The Edinburgh Companion to Shakespeare and the Arts (Edinburgh University Press, 2011). He is a Contributing Editor for Shakespeare Newsletter.

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Published

2013-09-01

Issue

Section

Articles