Maladjusted, a powerful interactive play that puts a human face on mental health issues, is stopping in Duncan for one night, offering a free performance at the Siem Lelum gym at 5574 River Rd. Friday, Jan. 30 at 7:30 p.m. Originally produced in 2013, and created and performed by patients and caregivers, the play is an up-close-and-personal look at many of the problems in the way we deal with people with mental problems.
Theatre for Living has been creating cutting edge, controversial and hard-hitting theatre since 1981. Some previous touring productions include No' Xya' (Our Footprints) (1987/88); Meth (2006); Shattering (2008); and Corporations in our Heads (2013).
Cast members bring rich and unique real-life experiences as patients and caregivers from within the mental health sector to the original creation and performance of this production.
Maladjusted engages audiences by weaving together three very personal narratives: a young teenager struggling with sadness over her friend's suicide is misdiagnosed by her doctor and put on prescription drugs; a young homeless man who is legitimately taking prescription meds gets thrown into dangerous circumstances by frustrated social workers, who from within a mechanizing system, are trying their best to help him; and finally, there are all of us, unable to adjust to the needs of a maladjusted mental health sector, who become potential agents for change.
How can we support human-centered care? What needs to be done to ensure safety for patients and caregivers? How do we sustain a healthy mental health system? These are just a few questions that Maladjusted explores.