Blackberry Winter

Vivienne Avery recounts her memories of caring for an aging mother who is slowly fading away and the difficult decisions regarding her care. Vivienne shares her journey from the moment of her mother’s diagnosis with Alzheimer’s to the present, inviting the audience into the world of this strange and debilitating disease. The drama unfolds through a series of interwoven stories about the memories sparked by a series of everyday objects. Interwoven with these stories is an evolving, wondrous 21st century Alzheimer’s creation myth — an origin story about a White Egret who tries to protect the animals of the forest as they lose their memories to a blind, oblivious Mole. Both the myth and the overall structure reflect the science behind Alzheimer’s in this funny, poetic and deeply moving play.