Dominic Moore-Dunson, one of Dance Magazine’s 2023 “25 to Watch,” first encountered The Remember Balloons during a library visit with his children. Author Jessie Oliveros and illustrator Dana Wulfekotte tell the story of a boy, James, and his grandfather, who share memories by passing balloons between them. The grandfather, who has Alzheimer’s disease, slowly loses his balloons over the course of the story.
Moore-Dunson and his wife, Ashley Moore-Dunson, were moved to raise awareness around Alzheimer’s and inspired by the possibility of reaching new audiences through live performance. They secured the exclusive North American rights to create a stage production based on the picture book, with an October 18 premiere scheduled in McLean, Virginia, followed by performances in Sheridan, Wyoming, on November 7 and in University Park, Illinoison November 12. Planned tour stops in 2025 so far include Luling, Louisiana; Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania; Knoxville, Tennessee; Paducah, Kentucky; and Des Moines, Iowa.
The Remember Balloons is written and illustrated for children, but it made a huge impression on you as an adult reader. What was it about this story that was so moving?
My wife and I have two toddlers and as we were getting ready to leave the library, I saw a shelf labeled as children’s books about difficult topics. I’m attracted to difficult topics. I pulled out this book illustrated in grayscale, with colorful balloons, and I was skeptical that anything with balloons could be so hard.
I was bawling in the library. That evening, my wife told me her grandmother suffered from Alzheimer’s and that she could still recall the day her grandmother forgot about her.
So right away, the book was already sparking conversations about Alzheimer’s disease.
Nobody talks about this disease. I’ll ask people to raise their hand if they’ve been impacted by it and 75 percent of people in every room raise their hand. It’s staggering.
Why do you think there’s so much silence around Alzheimer’s?
Personal loss and pain can feel shameful. And it’s a scary disease. It’s scary to watch a person you love change in front of your eyes. In our production, Grandpa’s demeanor changes over the course of the show. The way you make something less scary is by talking about it.
Anna Baugham in Dominic Moore-Dunson’s The Remember Balloons. Photo by Shane Wynn, Courtesy Moore-Dunson.
Does your stage version differ from the book?
Our stage adaptation brings the mother forward. In the book, James and Grandpa are people of color, and we grow up in multigenerational homes. I wanted our onstage family to be multigenerational. Statistically, in-home caregivers are more likely to be women. We needed to show the caregiver who’s stuck between raising her children and taking care of the elderly. Who is taking care of her?
What was your artistic process for bringing a book to life onstage?
The dancers are close personal friends of mine, people who I love and trust. I wanted that relationship because I knew we were going to talk about something hard. The composer, Theron Brown, has challenged me to become a musician and I’ve challenged him to become a dancer. He’s been in the studio with us every day, improvising on the piano as the dancers improvise to find these characters.
Our movement palette is an interesting juxtaposition of contemporary dance and what we call, internally, “the get-down.” It’s how people boogie in their living rooms and at family reunions. People recognize the get-down from their own homes, and you can see the audience smiling. This familial and familiar movement allows people to see the emotional truth within abstract dancing, too.
Larry White in Dominic Moore-Dunson’s The Remember Balloons. Photo by Shane Wynn, Courtesy Moore-Dunson.
How do you approach theater for young audiences (TYA)?
I’m a contemporary-dance maker who happens to be venturing into the TYA space. My role is to figure out how to talk to kindergarteners about a difficult topic in an accessible way. Kids are ready for these conversations so long as adults prepare them to be in a difficult space.
Another thing to consider is that kids will not sit through a show to be polite. You need to make sure the high and low points are clear, that each character has a beginning, middle, and end. As soon as the show starts, kids need to be leaning forward in their seats. They’ll yell out, “This is boring!” They’re ruthless.
Where do you see this project going, long-term?
One of my dreams is to partner with a chapter of a national organization, like the Alzheimer’s Association, to raise awareness. One of the things we’re really trying to get across is generational exchange, asking grandparents about their stories but also hearing the youngest kids, as well. We’re really trying to be honest about the struggle, but also the love and joy that’s present.
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