Before I Leave

National Theatre Wales with Wales Millennium Centre 

Written by Patrick Jones
Directed by Matthew Dunster

Before I leave I’ll give you some happiness
The laughter and pain, the good that remains
Hold me tighter still, keep me safe until
Hold me close, before I leave

In Merthyr, people who are losing themselves find each other in a choir for individuals living with dementia and Alzheimer’s.

Joe is too young, this shouldn’t be happening to him; Dyanne battles to hold on to the man she married. Evan and Rocky fight a 30-year-old fight – the miners’ strike may be long gone, but the scars remain as the memories jumble and fade. Ex-librarian and mezzo-soprano Marge has lost her voice. Perhaps only the choir can help her get it back. And Isabelle won’t let her spirit be locked away and forgotten in a care home that she thinks doesn’t care at all.

This funny, moving and ultimately uplifting production featured covers of well-known songs by artists ranging from Tom Jones to the Sex Pistols, plus new music by Nicky Wire and James Dean Bradfield of Manic Street Preachers

Listen to our Spotify playlist of songs which have inspired this production…