Review: The Memory Show, 5/2/13

Rows of framed pictures flicker and fade, just like the memories of the mother in the new musical The Memory Show (playing at the Duke Theater until May 18). The show isn’t a “musical” in the typical Broadway sense, but instead, the haunting dissonant orchestration and lyrics contribute to the poignancy of the piece. 

A 31-year-old daughter is forced to put her life on hold to take care of her aging, strong-willed mother, who is suffering from early onset Alzheimers disease. Though the show is intense, there is a good balance between emotionally agonizing moments and humor.  Perhaps this is best explained by the repeated phrase in the piece, “funny people are the saddest.” The daughter copes with the tragedy of her mother’s illness through dry witty comments, and the mother deals with the holes in her memory in occasionally comical ways.

Catherine Cox (the mother) and Leslie Kritzner (the daughter) convincingly portray the downward spiral and struggles as a result of the disease. As the disease takes its toll, their strained, complex relationship also is tested.  Sara Cooper, the writer of the show, captured the difficulties caused by the generation gap, tough love, a sense of family obligation, and family secrets in an achingly realistic depiction.  

The obstacles blocking a healthy mother-daughter relationship seem like they are impossible to overcome as the mother regresses further and further into a more confused, upset, and even paranoid state.  The role-reversal cycle (parents take care of children, children take care of elderly parents) is extreme, and the daughter fills more than just her “responsible-adult/caretaker” obligation as the mother slips into memory lapses.  The daughter is viewed also as the mother’s childhood friend, the husband, and eventually her mother’s mother.  With each memory mix-up and retelling of the story, facts get more jumbled and family secrets spill out, including dark truths about the mother’s mental instability and the husband/father that seems to be one of the major roots of the mother and daughter’s difficult relationship.  Even in the mother’s declining state, the two women prove love can withstand and heal. 

This Memory Show demonstrates that the long road of devastation caused by Alzheimers is tragic, but the enduring bond and strength of love is more powerful. It’s important to value things while they’re present, while also listening and fully loving to bear the suffering. 

For tickets and more info about the show: www.transportgroup.org/memory-show