Artmaking and Well-being Take Center Stage for Goddard House Community Initiatives (GHCI) and SpeakEasy Stage Company
Panel of Art Therapists Highlights Pru Payne’s Themes of Love and Memory Loss and Showcase the Therapeutic Power of Creative Expression
Boston, MA — Goddard House Community Initiatives (GHCI), an innovator in creative aging programs, joined forces with SpeakEasy Stage Company to highlight the synergy between the arts and health during an interactive panel discussion, Artmaking and Well-Being: Learn the Benefits of Art on the Mind & Body, following the performance of SpeakEasy Stage Company’s play Pru Payne on Sunday, November 10 at the Calderwood Pavilion at the Boston Center for the Arts, 527 Tremont Street, in Boston’s South End.
Expert-Led Panel Discussion: GHCI’s panel of experienced teaching artists and art therapists explored the themes of memory loss and its impact on relationships as depicted in Pru Payne. Attendees learned about the therapeutic benefits of creative expression, particularly for individuals with memory loss and their loved ones. The interactive session included a lively Q&A, where the audience gained practical insights into using art to foster well-being.
Why Art-Making Matters: The event underscored GHCI’s leadership in delivering high-quality art programs to neurodiverse older adults. In 2024 alone, GHCI engaged over 1,500 older adults in the Boston area through initiatives such as ceramics, visual arts, music, storytelling, and Opening Minds through Art, an evidence-based intergenerational program designed for neurodiverse individuals. These programs were facilitated by teaching artists and students from universities including Lesley University, Berklee College of Music, and Simmons University, among others.
The collaboration between GHCI and SpeakEasy Stage Company exemplified the healing power of the arts, providing a transformative approach to aging that fosters creativity, connection, and community.
About Pru Payne: Written by Newton native Steven Drukman, Pru Payne tells the story of Prudence “Pru” Payne, a sharp-tongued intellectual and critic who recently signed on to share her extraordinary life in an eagerly awaited memoir. But when Pru’s memory starts to fade, her son sets her up in a state-of-the-art care facility, where love takes hold just as the world she once knew begins to slip away. With wit, verve, and above all, heart, Drukman’s deeply emotional and funny play explores questions of memory, identity, and connection.
About Goddard House Community Initiatives (GHCI): GHCI is an innovative and growing social enterprise that brings the joy and fellowship of the arts to under-resourced older adults living in Greater Boston. Through professionally taught creative aging programs in art, music, and other forms of creative expression, participants are empowered to thrive creatively while fostering social connections and building community. For more information, please visit GoddardHouse.org.
About SpeakEasy Stage Company: Now in its 34th Season, SpeakEasy Stage is an award-winning, not-for-profit, professional theatre company in residence at the Stanford Calderwood Pavilion at the Boston Center for the Arts. Founded and led by Producing Artistic Director Paul Daigneault, the company has consistently won acclaim for its intimate, top-quality, original productions of bold contemporary plays and musicals that, for three decades, have sparked conversations that challenge, connect, and inspire its audiences and the Greater Boston community. In addition, as part of its mission to build and support a thriving local theatre scene, SpeakEasy works with hundreds of Massachusetts-based actors, directors, designers, and technicians each year, and trains early-career artists through its emerging artist and fellowship programs. From its humble 40-seat beginnings, the company has emerged as a leader in Boston’s theatre community, a champion of diverse and emerging voices, and a staunch proponent of the transformative power of theatre to bring about social change.
SpeakEasyStage.com
For more information, contact:
Christine Nagle
Director of Community Partnerships
Goddard House
cnagle@goddardhouse.org
617-731-8500 x 143
Jim Torres
Director of Press & External Relations
SpeakEasy Stage Company
617-529-1670 (cell)