PRESS RELEASE

PRESS RELEASE &n= bsp; = ;

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For Immediate Release = &nb= sp; Contact: Maryann Maslan (510) 444.4755<= /p>

April 14, 200= 6 &= nbsp; &nbs= p; = = E-mail: maryann@stagebridge.org

NEXT WORKSHOP:

WHEN: = 12:30 – 2:30 p.m., Thursday, April 20, 2006<= /b>

WHERE: =        Fontaine Room

      = ;            &n= bsp;     Samuel Merritt College School of Nursing

&= nbsp;           &nbs= p;          370 Hawthorne Ave.

&= nbsp;           &nbs= p;          Oakland, CA 94609<= /span>

Senior Theater Company to be Honor= ed at International Competition         &= nbsp;            for Innovative He= althy Aging Programs

OAKLAND, CA – Acting, singing and storytelling a= re not the usual techniques taught to nursing students, unless they are part of Stagebridge Senior Theatre’s Healthy Aging Program at Samuel Merritt College.

The innovative program called “See Me!” us= es improvisation, storytelling and musical skits in a classroom setting to help nurses gain more understanding and compassion for older adults. It was crea= ted at Stagebridge Theatre Company; the nation’s the oldest senior theater company, based in Oakland since 1978.

“See Me!” will be honored by the 2006 Blai= r L. Sadler International Healing Arts Competition at the Society for the Arts in Healthcare conference in Chica= go later this month. The competition’s panel called it "one of the = most innovative integrations of arts into healthcare that improves the quality of the health care experience for patients, their families and caregivers.R= 21;

The Healthy Aging Program for nursing students is in i= ts second year at Samuel Merritt College, School of Nursing in Oakland.

“This is an experience that students cannot get = from a lecture or reading assignments – how to confront their own bias, atti= tude and view on the aging process,” said Jennifer Winters, Assistant Professor at Samuel Merritt.

“Witnessing older adults performing and improvis= ing in a humorous way, breaks down the stereotypes regarding aging,” added Winters.

At the end of the first year of the program, the staff= at Samuel Merritt conducted a written survey amongst the students to evaluate = the experience.

The results are in and “fantastic,” said D= r. Stuart Kandell, director and founder of Stagebridge.

The mostly anonymous comm= ents from third year students included: “I am a more compassionate person = and have a great deal more respect for the aging and their illnesses and what t= hey go through.”

Classmate Cassie Childers= , 22, confirmed what many other future nurses said, “We learned a lot from = this class that we can put into action.”

The nationally acclaimed t= heater company of older adults based in Oakland is celebrating its 27th season as the nation's oldest senior theatre compan= y. Since its beginning, the company’s mission has been to make theater an opportunity for older people and to use theater to bridge the generations. = The actors range in age from 50–90 years. The company has performed over = 30 original plays for more than 250,000 people in clubs, senior centers, hospitals, schools and theaters throughout the San Francisco Bay Area. Stagebridge has been featured on ABC-TV,= CNN, National Public Radio, and in Modern Maturity.

The Healthy Aging Program is expanding to other health= care training programs in Northern California= . The program will debut at the University of San Francisco in May, and in = the fall San Francisco State University will add components of “See Me!” to the curriculum.

Stagebridge’s Health= y Aging Programs are sponsored in part by grants from Alameda County Art Commission, Bernard Osher Foundation, City of Berkeley Artsfund, City of Oakland Cultural Arts<= /st1:City>, Crescent Porter Hale Foundation, Nelson Fun, San Francisco Foundation, The Thoresen Foundation and Van Loben Sels/Rembe Rock Foundation.

For more information about Stagebridge, visit www.stagebridge.= org or call 510.444.4755. Stagebridge is a non-profit organization.<= /span>