Canton Township — At most movie showings, audience members are expected to minimize noise and movement to avoid disturbing other viewers.
But at a recent afternoon screening of “American Graffiti” at Emagine Canton, moviegoers were encouraged to sing, clap and dance as much as they wanted. The 1973 coming-of-age film was shown with a softer sound and ambient lighting in the theater as part of a series Emagine is offering for people with dementia and other memory issues.
The dementia-friendly showings are at 2 p.m. the second Wednesday of the month at the theater chain’s locations in Canton, Rochester Hills, Saline, Lake Geneva, Wis., and Batavia, Ill. That time is chosen to provide predictability for attendees and a low-traffic environment so staff can assist expected groups of 30-40 customers, said Trevor Baker, chief operating officer for Emagine Entertainment.
“We’re really the only ones in North America that have this type of showing, which is just a shame … that it took us so long to kind of look and see how we can provide an environment that meets the need of dementia-friendly guests,” Baker said. “But we’ve gotten great feedback from guests that have gone.”
The special silver screen showings are among a growing number of offerings from Metro Detroit businesses and social service agencies tailored for people with memory issues, a population that’s growing in Michigan. According to the Alzheimer’s Association, 203,000 people aged 65 and older are living with the memory-sapping disease in Michigan, and that number is projected to rise.
“The sad demographic fact is that there are a lot of people living with dementia,” said Jim Mangi, founder of Dementia Friendly Saline.
‘They’re still people’
Mangi’s nonprofit organization operates a memory café every few weeks at First Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Ann Arbor, offering safe spaces for those with dementia and their caregivers to gather in social situations and enjoy live music, other entertainment such as magic shows, or craft activities. The next events are scheduled from 2-4 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 29; Wednesday, Nov. 20; Tuesday, Dec. 3 and Wednesday, Dec. 18.
“People with dementia are exactly that — they’re people,” Mangi said. “They’re losing some abilities, but they’re still people.”
The Brown Day Adult Program in Southfield provides dementia-specific programming to seniors with diagnoses of cognitive alteration like Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s, dementia or mild cognitive impairment, as well as their caregivers.
“The benefits of being dementia-specific is that all of our staff are being trained on how the brain changes,” said Debi Banooni, the program’s director. “The constant stimulation that people receive in our program does help slow the progression of brain changes because you’re consistently using the skills that are there and challenging the brain and the muscles.”
Offerings include yoga classes, brain games, exercise classes, sessions with music therapists and other activities that usually involve music.
“When a person is starting to lose communication skills or things of that nature, the words, the rhythm, everything will come back to them and they’ll engage,” Banooni said. “Our goal is that anyone who’s coming is coming to have a day of engagement. We want there to be physical, social and mental engagement throughout the day when somebody is here.”
Audience engagement
Emagine Entertainment had offered sensory-friendly films for several years when Mangi said he suggested the theater chain do the same for people with dementia. Now, Emagine Saline sees around 80 to 100 people for its monthly dementia-friendly screenings.
“The idea is to show a classic movie, a musical or comedy or something fun and we do it with the lights on, the sound down, so that everyone is comfortable,” Mangi said. “Then our MC gets up and tells everyone it’s OK to forget the rules, sing along, clap their feet, or get up and dance. “It really has been called a party where we show a movie.”
Teresa and William Bailey of Plymouth, who’ve been married for 25 years, are regular dementia-friendly moviegoers at Emagine Canton. William Bailey, who’s 88, couldn’t recall coming to the theater in Canton before the Oct. 9 showing of “American Graffiti” but he knows he loves musicals and always dreamed of playing an instrument.
“I’m a musical guy … I never learned to play any instruments except the harmonica, but I always wanted to play the saxophone,” he said. “And I had every opportunity to, but I was too damn lazy.”
Although he was diagnosed with dementia about seven years ago, his wife, who’s 69, says he hasn’t lost his sense of humor.
“I have had one great life. I can’t complain a bit. I didn’t make a dime. Not in the top 10 of anything … but great, great life and a wonderful, wonderful wife … my third,” he said.
Teresa Bailey said she believes watching the musicals helps them recall memories and gives them “a day out.”
Before watching “American Graffiti,” seniors mingled in a room near the theater and enjoyed desserts before being guided to their seats with popcorn and a soft drink.
Georgia and Joseph Hawrylak of Westland are both 86 and planning to retire at Waltonwood Carriage Park, a retirement home that partners with Emagine Canton to sponsor residents and members of the public for admission to dementia-friendly movies.
Georgia Hawrylak says her husband of 64 years suffered a stroke and she acts as his caregiver.
“He loves movies … we like musicals, mysteries. It’s something to do (rather) than sit at home,” she said. “It gets him out walking a little bit and the more he sits, the more he won’t walk, so I work very hard at getting him up and getting him walking because I think that’s very important.”
Less difficulty, more dignity
Mangi says his goal is to help people living with dementia to live in the community with less difficulty and more dignity as they shop, dine, work and enjoy fellowship.
“It’s just a matter of educating the personnel (or) the staff in how to act or interact with a person with dementia,” he said. “A person living with dementia typically has short-term memory problems … so they can’t remember that they just asked you this question, so they’ll ask you the question again.
“It’s not a matter of the person not paying attention … they’re doing the best they can with broken equipment,” Mangi said. “Their brains are being damaged, so we just need to have some patience with them and answer the question the second or fourth time.”
He said working with dementia patients, while challenging, has its rewards.
“My favorite experience: a wife and husband, he’s living with dementia. She came out of the theater and most people come out, they’re smiling, they’re happy … this one lady came out she was weeping and she walked out with her husband.
“I said, ‘Sally, didn’t you have a good time?’ She said, ‘Oh yes, I had such a good time. I just had a date with my husband for the first time in nine years. We held hands. We shared popcorn, just like the old days.’
“And that’s why we’re doing it — for experiences like that for the person with dementia and the caregiver.”
@_myeshajohnson
