Innovation Fund spotlight: Let’s Go to the Seaside

Developed by RED NOSES Slovenia, “Let’s Go to the Seaside” is an artistic format which invites us to embark on an imaginative and emotional journey. In this performance, the artists do not travel alone but take their audience with them on a trip to the seaside! Having been especially developed for residents of care homes living with dementia, a world of humour, songs, memory, physical sensations and emotions is created together.

A sensory expedition to the sea

At the centre of the story are two clown artists who set off on a joyful train ride to the seaside. A third artist accompanies them, enriching the tale with live music from an accordion. The performance engages multiple senses using scents like lavender, textured fabrics and the sounds of waves. Even a large, lightweight ball is passed among the audience, creating a sensual and rich environment that resonates with the older adults, making the performance accessible and engaging.

The theme of travel is powerful because it opens doors to personal memories and feelings from the past. Let’s Go to the Seaside is not only a trip to a destination but also a journey through time, reviving memories of sea breezes, train rides, summer laughter and heartfelt emotions. 

We sat down with Tomaž Lapajne Dekleva, the coordinator of the project and also a healthcare clown with RED NOSES Slovenia. In the following interview, he shares his personal experience of being part of this unique production, the challenges and joys of performing for people with dementia, and the meaningful connections made along the way.

• What inspired you to create this particular project?

Traditional clown visits in care homes, when a clown duo visits one room after the other, sometimes do not cover the needs of people living with dementia. Over the past years, huge steps have been made in the Slovenian clown team in understanding specifics in communication with people living with dementia. We recognised that traditional visits, while we are all certainly doing our best, cannot entirely cover the specific communication needs of people with dementia. We formed study groups and started our own research, met with people with lived experience and artistic experts. A big inspiration was Magdalena Schamberger's project Curious Shoes and of course our own experiences in care homes.

• If you could describe “Let's Go to the Seaside” in three words, what would they be?

Meeting in common

• How did the audience react to the project?

We didn't know at the beginning how the audience would react, and we were very surprised when the format was working better than we expected. People with dementia felt really safe and opened up for interaction. By setting up a theatre space with red curtains and spotlights, we established an environment with which people were familiar and in which they felt safe. With this set-up, we were able to approach the audience as a whole, meaning all members at once (with emotions, visual elements, movements, spoken words) as well as each audience member individually (with touch, smell, bouncing an inflatable ball). All these approaches worked better than expected—people living with dementia ‘travelled’ the journey to the seaside together with us.

• Which moment was especially memorable?

The most memorable moments were when people with advanced dementia followed what was happening and were emotionally absorbed in the action. The experience was so strongly emotional that parts of it were recalled by people with advanced dementia even weeks after the event. 

• What surprised you?

The big surprise was how the format works for people with very advanced dementia—the ones who don't communicate verbally anymore and close their eyes or look on floor most of the time. They also opened up and were joining in the emotions (for a short time of course).

• What challenges did you face?

The biggest challenges we faced (and are still facing at the moment) are organisational ones. The format is very demanding for the performers, both energy- and timewise. Some artists have therefore taken a step back—they choose to participate in fewer performances—so we are training new clowns for it. Artistically, we feel we are on the right track, as the feedback from care home staff is confirming without exceptions.

• What advice would you give your fellow artists who want to try out new ideas?

We would suggest agreeing on a certain set of basics before the start of the initiative. We approached the project based on the following guidelines which we created ourselves. We were:

• Deepening theoretical knowledge in a study group.
• Exploring projects that have been already done in the area we aimed to work in.
• Always taking care that the project stays in the field of arts and does not slip into therapy (keeping the therapeutical part in mind as well).
• Trying basic things on a small scale and not giving up if they don’t meet the expectations on the first try.
• Being flexible with adapting the project to the circumstances.
• Being patient with including the project in the organisation's plans.

• What are your artistic plans for the future at RED NOSES?

We would like to continue developing formats that are done for specific groups of people and addressing their specific needs. With “Let's Go to the Seaside” we want to continue visiting wards of care homes with people with dementia. There are so many of them...

About the Innovation Fund

This article is the second in a series highlighting projects from the RED NOSES International Innovation Fund. The Innovation Fund is a laboratory to explore shared creative forces in the RED NOSES group. With four calls for creative ideas so far, the Innovation Fund has invited RED NOSES artists since 2021 to develop and share their artistic projects. The most promising initiatives are selected by a council and receive grant support. Emphasis is given to the transferability to other RED NOSES countries, ensuring that the entire RED NOSES community can benefit from the innovation.