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We are a new company
Developing as a social enterprise
Active engagement through interactive comedy
Establishing a nationwide network
Small and flexible
Creative
Bespoke work
Including new focus on Forum Comedy
Use professional comedians
Professional comedy trainers
Our focus
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Interactive comedy
Comedy as therapy
Support older and vulnerable people
Can also work with other age groups
Comedy to challenge stereotypes
Comedy to create opportunities
Innovative consultation techniques
We are very interactive
Often work with very vulnerable
people
Encourage maximum involvement
Use comedy as therapy
“When you walk into the room you
bring a ray of sunshine that beams
right through our bodies.”
Harry, an older resident at Central
& Cecil
Can work with all age groups
Comedy breaks down barriers
Opportunities to learn new skills
Innovative consultation
What does Silver Comedy offer?
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Interactive comedy engagement sessions
Comedy sketch writing courses and shows
Bespoke projects and events
Silver stand up competitions and training
Forum Comedy
Productions including films, dvds, podcasts
Interactive comedy engagement
sessions
Workshops often include staff
Improvisation
Comedy games
Role play
Improvised comedy drama
Murder mystery
Often use props
and fancy dress
Counteract loneliness
Enhance wellbeing
Encourage active fun
Even singing and dancing
Provide lots of laughter
Comedy sketch writing
Cameo sketches
Live performances of comedy sketches
Silver Comedy Stand Up of the Year
Competition
Our Queen’s Visit Project
Forum Comedy
East London NHS Foundation Trust
Forum Comedy in Consultation
• Consultation necessary
• Often dull and repetitive
• Simple questions can make people feel stupid
BUT
• People are interested and want to shape things
• Power of comedy
• More likely to encourage a good attendance
• Qualitative not quantitative
• Better than public meetings and questionnaires
What is Forum Comedy?
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Forum theatre + comedy
Interactive & improvised real life scenarios
Expressing real issues
Using satire
Using fictitious identities
Confidentiality protected
High level of participant involvement
Serious issues are considered in non threatening
environment
• Can also be very entertaining
Comedy is the Best Medicine
Forum Comedy
How does it work?
• Consider key issues in workshops facilitated by
managers and front line workers
• Real examples of people’s experience of front
line services are sought
• Both positive and negative
• Each experience is detailed through 2 fictional
characters – one male and one female
• Each experience is written up on a flip chart
Workshops facilitated by Managers
Workshops facilitated by Silver
Comedy
Forum Comedy
process
• Each story is detailed in bullet point form on
individual flip chart sheets by initial workshops
• Each story is personalised via a fictional identity
eg Janet or John
• Many examples are chosen - both good and bad
• The stories are prioritised by the group
• Comedians then use role play to act these out
• Sessions are facilitated by professional comedy
trainer
Comedians acting out scenes
Forum Comedy
• Issues are then discussed
• Aspects of the comedy role play can also be
replayed to offer alternative outcomes
• The focus of the discussion is on changes needed
to service based on acted out scenes
• Managers and staff can detail main conclusions
• Consultation events can be filmed
• DVDs can be shown more broadly to hard to
reach groups and used for staff training
Discussing issues that matter
Our work
• Our work has been evaluated by Middlesex
University’s Social Work Department
• We have already worked with various Housing
Associations e.g. Hyde, ASRA, Affinity Sutton
• Leicester County Council, Cheshire East, LB
Haringey, East London NHS Foundation Trust,
Capital Age Festival, Dave’s Leicester Comedy
Festival, various Age UK & Age Concern centres
• We’re regularly asked back for more!
The Queen likes us
Contact: George Baddeley
Tel:
07525 154616
Email: [email protected]
www.silvercomedy.co.uk