Silva Lining‘s Care Plan
Podcast drama: Three brains, two bodies, one secret plan: an absurd journey into the invisible world of carers and dementia. Silva keeps her new Brain in the cupboard under the stairs, who should Karen the carer care for now? “Heart-rending and laugh out loud, a roller-coaster of an emotional journey”, Alex Coulter, Culture, Health and Wellbeing Alliance Nominated Best Podcast, Rockie Award 2022 Nominated Best Podcast, Miami Web Fest 2022 Selected New Jersey Webfest 2022 Shortlisted Marlene Sidaway, Best Actress, BBC Audio Award 2022 Shortlisted Best Audio Fiction Series, Indie Series Awards 2022 Longlisted for the Woman’s Prize of Playwrighting 2020 Cast and Company: Silva Marlene Sidaway Karen Melissa Johns Brain Shappi Khorsandi Mark Cyril Nri Music Sarah Moody Dramaturg Sara Davies Written and Directed by Elspeth Penny Assistant Producer (casting): Tess Davidson Original Sound Recordings Euan McAleece Post Production Sound Iain Hunter Made by 2BU Productions Ltd www.2buproductions.org Based on research by Professor Justine Schneider, University of Nottingham Funding from: Arts Council England; NIHR School for Social Care Research, University of Nottingham for dissemination of the BOUGH study of home care for people with dementia. Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) Impact Acceleration funding; Adrian Mantle Thank you to: the original cast and team for the theatre work in progress play: Pameli Benham, Angie Belcher, Sarah Moody, Izzy Ripley, Chris Pirie, David Lane and Fiona Matthews/Theatre Orchard. Thanks also for help from Dons Coleston-Shields, Simon Winkler, Bede Burston, Charlotte Bailey, Arthur Burston, David Richmond at Arts In Development, Theatre Bristol and Deasy Bamford. Some of the content may be sensitive or disturbing for some people.
Episodes
With Melissa Johns (Karen), Marlene Sidaway (Silva), Shaparak Khorsandi (Brain), and Cyril Nri (Mark).
What's it like playing Brain? Why is the play important? Was it fun to be in? Silva Lining's Care Play Writer and Director Elspeth Penny chatted to the actors behind the scenes.
Interviews transcribed and ordered by Nick Sutton
Edited by Iain Hunter
Music by Sarah Moody
Thanks to Lois Barton
Directed and Produced by Elspeth Penny
...The whole play: Silva, an elderly retired surgeon (Marlene Sidaway) cuts herself for secret reasons, Brain (Shappi Khorsandi) develops in a Petri dish and Karen (Melissa Johns) has to made some tricky decisions about what caring for someone actually is.
Silva has had a fall and is deteriorating. She wants the truth from Karen. Karen sees Brain though and has hope – what if Brain is actually the genuine authentic Silva? Brain thinks he’s ‘just a bit more attractive actually’. Brain is all for ‘Stand aside oldies’, and imitates Mark being sexy with Lisa. Who should be Karen’s priority to look after now?
Karen, the ‘perfect’ carer, is not feeling so compliant, and shows the camera in Silva’s house her arse. Brain is developing and is now repeating words, but no one but us can hear them. Karen and Silva learn more about each other, and Brain manages a massive fart.
Silva, a senior retired surgeon has been cutting herself. She warns herself to be careful with incision instruments. What is she growing in the petri-dish? It’s something secret. Something she is attending to always. The stakes are high for Silva to find the right carer, who she can trust to take this invention on when she gets too far down the dementia path. Will her new carer Karen be 'the one?'
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