The Estate is a collaborative radio soap opera project between Older people and writer Katie Holly

Description

Using creative Ireland funding, we invited playwright Katie Holly to collaborate with older people who formed a group specifically for this project, They met for 10 weeks in the council chamber to develop and write the script. They then spent one weekend recording 10 episodes. Some participants acted in the piece and we also brought in a director and some professional actors. Each episode is between 8 -12 minutes long. It is a story about a family of adult siblings and their mother who has dementia. Whilst they are trying to look after her and figure out what is best for her and their expected inheritance, there are affairs, gambling addictions, unrequited love and good old fashioned sibling rivalry. The story looks at the agency of older people and their choices in where they live and the care they receive as they age. It also addresses the generation who are ‘in the middle’: both caring for children and their ageing parents, as they themselves age.

Aim of Initiative

The aim of the initiative is to give a voice to older people: addressing concerns and themes of interest through storytelling, in a collaborative way where older people are the active creators. The secondary aim is to create a platform for the voice of the older people through story telling.

Who is it aimed at

The initiative is aimed at older people across the county. The audience for the soap opera will be a general audience who listen to radio.

3 Steps critical to success

1. The ‘Buy-in’ of participants – they chose to participate (they were not a group beforehand), and chose the subject matter they wished to explore. They committed the time and focus to the writing and recording of the project.
2. The experience and talent of the collaborating writer, Katie Holly. Katie has had several works on stage on adapted for radio. She also has experience working with groups.
3. The buy in of the funder, Creative Ireland – we would not be able to do a project this large and ambitious without their funding and support.

3 Challenges in Planning / Delivery

1. Engaging with people over a long period of time through the various stages of the project: writing, recording and pitching it to radio stations
2. Supporting this project with adequate funding – this was no longer a challenge after Creative Ireland came on board.
3. Broadcasting the work on national / commercial radio stations: we would love to do this in order to reach a wider audience. Even though each episode is short, many radio stations consider it ‘long-form’ and there is no longer space on radio for this like there used to be, for example ‘Harbour Hotel’ ran for several years on Radio 1. However we will connect with people through community radio and podcasting. We have hired a PR company to help us distribute and publicise this work. We will also be giving the episodes to activity coordinators in Nursing Homes so they can play it for residents.

3 Outcomes / Benefits

1. A new group formed of people with similar interests, working creatively together, with the support of an experienced facilitator.
2. Platforming the voice of the older person on radio, podcasts and on our website.
3. The wider community benefits from the creativity, wisdom and experiences of this group through their work.