1998: Damaged Care
Fall of 1998, Tour: LA and ?
| Written by Joan Holden & Karim Scarlata Music by Bruce Barthol, Eric Crystal, Liberty Ellman & Derrek Phillips Lyrics by Bruce Barthol Directed by Dan Chumley DAMAGED CARE featured performers Michael Gene Sullivan, Velina Brown, Keiko Shimosato Carreiro, Amos Glick, Ed Holmes & Victor Toman and band members Eric Crystal, Liberty Ellman & Derrek Phillips |
 Poster Design: John Chamberlin, Alex Torres & Peggy Snider |
A "nouveau commedia" nightmare: As the "invisible hand" of the free market tightens its grip on America's healthcare system, a newly privatized hospital becomes a McHealth outlet complete with drive-through surgery, and a shrinking staff on an ever-accelerating schedule struggles with cost-cutting, treatment-rationing managers to care for a swelling mob of ever-sicker patients. In the San Francisco Mime Troupe's new 1998 summer show, America's healthcare crisis becomes a metaphor for today's downsized, sped-up, go-go economy, where the stock market booms as whole classes of workers are dumped onto the streets and even high-paid professionals work in sweatshops. |
Reviews and Articles:"Damaged Care does score some dead hits on HMO madness."SF Gate - 7/6/98 "The San Francisco Mime Troupe sums up "managed care" in one line of one of Bruce Barthol's songs - 'The less we do, the more we make'" SF Gate home of the San Francisco Chronicle - 7/6/98 "Speaking Their Mimes" Los Angeles Times - 7/17/98 "The performing style for "Damaged Care" is clownish commedia dell'arte, complete with masks and archetypal characterizations..." Los Angeles Times - 10/10/98 |
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