The Necessary Stage (TNS) is at the forefront of social and community theatre in Singapore, and in recent years, has been creating and performing plays on specific medical issues such as dementia, suicide, biomedical ethics and palliative care.
Published in 2013, Don't Forget to Remember Me is a collection featuring six of these plays by award-winning playwright Haresh Sharma.
The publication also contains notes on the plays by the writer as well as an introduction by TNS' Founder and Artistic Director, Alvin Tan.
About the Plays
Staying Alive
A family that plays together, stays together. But what if this family has no time to play? What if this family is plagued by problems- a father who has recently been retrenched and has difficulty finding a new job; a daughter stressed out by school and relationships; a son who has no time to enjoy his youth; and a mother trying desperately to hold the family together. A family that plays together, stays together. This family is not only trying to stay together, this family is fighting to stay alive.
Future Perfect
3 stories are intertwined in this brand new play about human enhancement. The first is about a couple, Melissa and Joe, who takes the Youth Fountain serum. Can the couple live to the age of 200 years? The second story features a shop at the market which sells stem cells and the unlikely friendship that develops between seller Sam and Gina. In the third story, a young husband and his mother visit Designer Babies, a new centre which creates perfect babies through genetic modification. Light-hearted, dramatic and sometimes poignant, Future Perfect is the perfect educational play to highlight issues of biomedical ethics and to leave students wanting more.
When the Bough Breaks
Depression can affect first-time mothers and even experienced mothers with a newborn. Understanding the tumultuous journey helps families cope with this common situation. The play When the Bough Breaks, organised by KKH Mental Wellness Service and produced by The Necessary Stage, tells the story of Susan, who struggles with Postpartum Depression. Find out how Susan and her family overcome all odds on their journey to recovery.
Don't Know Don't Care
Don't Know, Don't Care by The Necessary Stage looks at a family trying to deal with terminal illness within the household. Wrapped up in their own lives, the family members 'don't want to know'. They prefer to leave the care-giving to strangers. Soon, they realise they have to know, they learn how to care. They discover the importance of being there for each other. At a time of illness, they can finally share a bond and experience joy.
Don't Forget to Remember Me
Dementia is not normal ageing. When Madam Wong begins her retirement, all she can think of is enjoying her golden years with rest and serenity, surrounded by family and friends. However, rest turns into restlessness as she starts to lose her short-term memory. Her dream of a peaceful life soon becomes a nightmare of remembering and forgetting. Don't Forget to Remember Me deals with the trials and tribulations of people with dementia and their struggles to come to terms with their illness
I Have a Friend
This play revolves around two friends driven to attempt suicide. It introduces avenues that are open to troubled individuals.