In 2018-2019, seven people ages 73-95 met to create a theatre event and a film from the stories of their lives and the history they helped to make in the Great Depression, the March on Washington, the civil rights era, and four wars.
Director Steve Umberger
Film by Steve Umberger/Jay Thomas
Music Fred Story
Sponsored by and produced with Aldersgate
Watch Acting Our Age trailer:
Lyndall Hare, Steve Umberger and Aldersgate COO Jeff Weatherhead talk about the project
Click / slide images below for gallery and scroll for more info.
Photography: Jay Thomas, Bob Payet, Lyndall Hare, Barry Sherman, Steve Umberger
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"The collaboration between theatre director and gerontologist turns decades of memories into a collective whole."
Observer (feature)
Observer (feature)
"This is an example of how we can save the world - conversations, empathy, engagement."
Audience member Beth Monaghan
Audience member Beth Monaghan
Links to press coverage
Charlotte Observer Seniors take the audience on a trip
CVNC Journal A gift to the present through insight into the past
Acting Our Age 2020-2022
Acting Our Age has become an annual series. 2020-2022 saw new groups document the history of their eras, past and present. Voices of the Pandemic (2021) is a film about living through the global pandemic. Each edition of Acting Our Age reflects the specific times of its cast. A new cohort is now developing the 2022 project for late fall production. The Acting Our Age films are available for screenings.