- Hi, I'm Dominic Moore-Dunson, choreographer, storyteller, and proud Akron native.

- And I'm Ashley Moore-Dunson, co-producer of "The Remember Balloons."

We're honored to bring you this special production.

- And I'm Theron Brown, pianist and composer.

Together we've created an experience that blends music, movement, and storytelling to explore memory, family, and connection.

- "The Remember Balloons" is inspired by the award-winning children's book by Jessie Oliveros.

It's a story about love, remembrance, and what happens when memories start to fade.

- So many families have been impacted by memory loss, whether through aging, Alzheimer's, or dementia.

Watching a loved one forget can be heartbreaking, but it also reminds us to cherish the moments we still have.

- Music has a unique way of bringing memories back to life.

A familiar song, a melody from the past, these can unlock feelings and stories we thought were lost.

My compositions for this piece are meant to hold those emotions, kinda like a musical scrapbook of love and remembrance.

- And through dance, we express what words often can't: the weight of holding onto memories, the fear of losing them, and the beauty of passing them on.

- This isn't just a performance, it's an invitation to reflect on your own remember balloons, and to celebrate the people and moments that have shaped your life.

- We hope this experience moves you, inspires you, and reminds you of the power of memory.

- Thank you for sharing this journey with us.

Now, sit back, open your hearts, and enjoy "The Remember Balloons."

♪ Wait ♪ Wait ♪ Wait a minute ♪ Wait a minute, wait a minute, wait a minute ♪ (soulful music fades out) (people speaking indistinctly) (stage creaking) (footsteps approaching) (child speaking indistinctly) (female dancer clapping) (footsteps thumping softly) (footsteps thumping) (footsteps scuttling) (child giggling) (footsteps thumping) (audience laughing) (footsteps echoing) (audience chuckling) (audience laughing) (audience laughing) (footsteps echoing) (dramatic music) (dramatic music continues) (bright music) (bright music stops) (bright music continues) (bright music stops) (audience laughing) (bright music continues) (bright music continues) (bright music continues) (sweet music) (sweet music continues) (lush music) (lush music continues) (sweet music) (sweet music continues) (audience laughing) (bright music) (bright music ends) (audience applauding) (footsteps echoing) (dancer imitating airplane) (dancer continues imitating airplane) (child giggles) (steady music) (steady music continues) - [Narrator] I have lots and lots of balloons, way more than my little brother.

(steady music continues) (steady music continues) "This one's my favorite," I tell him, pointing to the balloon filled with my last birthday party.

When I look at it, I can see the pony again.

I can still taste the chocolate frosting.

(lively music) (lively music continues) (lively music continues) (lively music continues) (lively music continues) (lively music continues) (lively music continues) (lively music continues) (lively music continues) (lively music continues) (lively music continues) (lively music continues) (lively music continues) (lively music continues) (lively music continues) (lively music continues) (lively music continues) Mom and Dad have more balloons than I do.

(bright music) (bright music continues) (bright music continues) Grandpa has lived so long, he has more balloons than all of us together!

(bright music continues) And the stories he has inside those balloons?

They're better than ponies and chocolate frosting.

(dramatic music) (dramatic music continues) (dramatic music continues) (soulful music) (soulful music continues) (soulful music continues) (soulful music continues) (soulful music continues) (soulful music continues) (soulful music continues) (soulful music continues) (soulful music continues) (soulful music continues) (soulful music continues) (soulful music continues) (soulful music continues) (soulful music continues) (soulful music continues) (soulful music continues) (soulful music continues) (soulful music continues) (soulful music stops) (child laughs) (soulful music continues) (soulful music continues) (soulful music continues) (soulful music continues) (soulful music ends) (footsteps echoing) (soulful music continues) (soulful music continues) (soulful music continues) (soulful music continues) (soulful music continues) (soulful music continues) (child laughing) (soulful music continues) "What's in your yellow balloon?"

I ask him.

Grandpa's eyes light up.

(dramatic music) (child laughing) (dramatic music continues) (steady music) "We'd just come back from picking blackberries "along the muddy banks of the creek.

"Our berry-splattered faces "gave Aunt Nelle's cow such a fright, "she didn't make milk for days."

(steady music continues) (steady music continues) "What about that blue one, Grandpa?"

(dramatic music) (dramatic music continues) "That's the time I lost my favorite dog, Jack."

Grandpa chuckles.

"I found him chasing butterflies next to the schoolhouse.

(steady music continues) "Only Jack could get me to school on a Saturday!"

(steady music continues) (steady music continues) "And that one?"

I point to a purple balloon above his head.

(dramatic music) (dramatic music continues) (dramatic music continues) (footsteps thumping) (lush music) (lush music continues) (lush music continues) (lush music continues) (lush music continues) Grandpa looks up and smiles, his face alive with remembering.

(lush music continues) (lush music continues) (lush music continues) (bright romantic music) (bright romantic music continues) "That's the day I married your grandma "in the little church on Cedar Lane.

(bright romantic music continues) (bright romantic music continues) "We danced that night under the stars.

(bright romantic music continues) (bright romantic music continues) (bright romantic music continues) "And oh, how I loved her!"

(lush music) (lush music continues) (lush music continues) (lush music continues) (lush music continues) (lush music continues) (lush music continues) (lush music continues) (lush music continues) (child speaking indistinctly) (lush music continues) (lush music continues) (lush music continues) (tense music) (tense music continues) (tense music stops) (twinkling music) (child laughing) (twinkling music) I don't have to ask him about the silver balloon, because I have one too.

(dramatic music) (footsteps thumping softly) (audience chuckling softly) (child laughing) (steady music) That was the day we stood on the dock till the sun went down, feeling tug after tug on our lines.

(steady music continues) (steady music continues) Grandpa and I must have caught a thousand fish.

(steady music continues) (piano notes sounding) (dissonant piano notes sounding) (loud piano notes sounding) (body thuds) (upbeat music) (upbeat music continues) (upbeat music continues) (upbeat music stops) (upbeat music) (upbeat music continues) (upbeat music continues) (child exclaims gleefully) (audience laughing) (upbeat music) (upbeat music continues) (upbeat music continues) (upbeat music continues) (upbeat music stops) (child laughs) (steady music) (steady music continues) (steady music continues) (steady music continues) (steady music continues) (tense music) (tense music continues) (upbeat music) (upbeat music continues) (upbeat music continues) (upbeat music continues) (upbeat music continues) (upbeat music ends) (audience applauding) (audience cheering) (boy panting deeply) (both inhales deeply) (audience laughing) (footsteps thumping) (steady music) (steady music continues) (steady music continues) Grandpa ruffles my hair like he always does.

"That's one of my favorite balloons."

"Mine, too," I say.

(steady music continues) (steady music continues) (child speaking indistinctly) (child speaking indistinctly continues) (child speaking indistinctly continues) (child giggles softly) (sad music) (sad music continues) (sad music continues) (sad music continues) (sad music continues) (sad music continues) (sad music continues) (sad music continues) (sad music continues) (sad music continues) (sad music continues) (sad music continues) (sad music continues) (sad music continues) (sad music continues) (sad music continues) (sad music continues) (sad music continues) (sad music continues) (sad music continues) (sad music continues) (sad music continues) (sad music continues) (sad music continues) (sad music continues) (sad music continues) (sad music continues) (sad music continues) (sad music continues) (sad music continues) (sad music continues) (sad music continues) (sad music continues) (sad music continues) (sad music continues) (sad music continues) (sad music continues) (sad music continues) (sad music continues) (sad music continues) (sad music continues) (sad music continues) (sad music continues) (sad music continues) (sad music continues) (woman crying) (woman continues crying) (woman continues crying) (woman exhales) (sad music) (sad music continues) (sad music continues) (sad music becomes dissonant) (dissonant music continues) (dissonant music continues) But Grandpa has been having problems with his balloons lately.

(dissonant music continues) (dissonant music continues) (dissonant music continues) (dissonant music continues) (dissonant music continues) (dissonant music continues) (dissonant music continues) (dissonant music continues) One will get caught in a tree.

(steady music) (steady music continues) (steady music continues) (steady music continues) (dramatic music) (steady music) (dissonant music) (dissonant music fades out) And he'll tell me the same stories over and over.

(steady music continues) (dissonant music) "Let me tell you about "the Christmas I went to Aunt Nelle's farm," Grandpa says, even though he just finished telling me about it.

(steady music continues) (dissonant music) (dissonant music continues) (dissonant music continues) Other times, a balloon will float right out of his hand, (air whooshing) and he won't even know it.

(child speaking indistinctly) "It's okay, Grandpa!"

I yell as I run after it.

(lively music) (lively music continues) (lively music continues) (lively music continues) Every time I almost reach it... (lively music continues) (lively music continues) (lively music continues) But it always slips away.

(lively music continues) "Something's wrong with Grandpa," I tell my parents.

"He can't hold on to his balloons anymore."

Mom looks at me with sad eyes.

"That happens sometimes when people grow older."

(lively music continues) (lively music continues) (lively music continues) (lively music continues) (lively music continues) (lively music continues) (lively music continues) (lively music continues) (lively music continues) Grandpa's balloons start floating away faster and faster.

(lively music continues) Running down streets and up hills, I watch the balloons grow smaller.

(lively music continues) (air whooshing) He finally loses the silver one.

I watch it float away until I can't see it anymore.

(sad music) (sad music continues) (sad music continues) (sad music continues) "Why did you let it go?"

I yell.

"That was our balloon!"

(sad music continues) Then I sit on the sidewalk and cry.

(sad music continues) I feel Grandpa pat my back, but he doesn't ruffle my hair like he always did.

"Why are you crying, child?

"There nothing to cry about."

(sad music continues) (sad music continues) (sad music continues) (sad music continues) (sad music continues) (sad music continues) (boy crying) (steady music) (steady music continues) (steady music continues) (steady music continues) (steady music continues) One day, I go to see him, and all his balloons are gone.

"Grandpa?"

I say, but he doesn't look at me.

(poignant music) "It'll be okay," Dad says.

"Look up!"

(poignant music continues) I have new balloons now.

A yellow one filled with blackberries and a cow.

A blue one filled with Grandpa and his favorite dog.

A purple one filled with a wedding day... (poignant music continues) "See?"

Mom says.

"Now they're yours to share."

(dramatic music) (dramatic music continues) (steady soulful music) (steady soulful music continues) (steady soulful music continues) (steady soulful music continues) (steady soulful music continues) (steady soulful music continues) (steady soulful music continues) (steady soulful music continues) (steady soulful music continues) (steady soulful music continues) So I climb into Grandpa's lap and begin telling him about my new balloons.

(steady soulful music continues) (steady soulful music continues) (steady soulful music continues) (steady soulful music continues) (steady soulful music continues) (steady soulful music continues) (steady soulful music continues) (steady soulful music continues) (steady soulful music continues) (steady soulful music continues) (steady soulful music continues) (steady soulful music continues) (steady soulful music continues) (steady soulful music continues) (steady soulful music continues) (steady soulful music continues) (steady soulful music continues) (steady soulful music continues) (steady soulful music continues) (steady soulful music continues) (audience applauding) (audience cheering) (bright music) (audience applause continues) (audience cheering continues) (bright music continues) (audience applause continues) (audience cheering continues) (bright music continues) (audience applause continues) (audience cheering continues) (bright music continues) (audience applause continues) (audience cheering continues) (bright music continues) (audience applause continues) (audience cheering continues) (bright music continues) (audience applause continues) (audience cheering continues) (bright music continues) (audience applause continues) (audience cheering continues) - So Ashley and I were in a library, Chateau Library in Akron, Ohio, with our, at the time, two and one-year-old.

And we took them to the library every week to get books.

At the time we came across this shelf that said children's books about difficult topics.

And I got really, really interested really quickly.

So I started flipping through all these books and I pulled out this white book with all these balloons on it.

And at first, skeptically, I looked at it and was like, "I mean, how hard could this be?"

And I opened it up and I was crying in this children's section of this library.

And so I handed the book to you, and I said, "You have to read this right now."

- [Ashley] And I was bawling.

- So we packed up the kids and we went home and we started having this long conversation about dementia and Alzheimer's.

And as a result that night I got onto Jessie Oliveros's website and just thanked her for this book and what it meant to our family to read it.

And at the very last moment I was like, "PS, would you ever let me turn this into a stage show?"

And, kind of, the rest is history.

- Yeah.

For me, what meant so much, and I think where the conversation led to you actually reaching out to the author is my grandmother had Alzheimer's.

I think I was seven, and I had no idea what was happening.

And the adults in my life did their absolute best.

But they didn't have resources to turn to and language to talk about this difficult, complex topic and situation that we were living day in and day out.

And how to address what it looks like when they forget you, or when the people that were feeding you, you now are feeding them and you're now caring for them as a 7-year-old, as a 10-year-old is.

And so this book, it simplifies it in the most beautiful way without diminishing it or taking away the hardship of it.

- Yeah, I remember when you first brought the book to me, Dominic.

The interesting thing is that we have similar families.

We have little ones and we're all trying to figure it out.

And I was just so happy when you brought the book to me in general 'cause I could read it to the kids and stuff, but it did strike me in a different way.

Especially seeing the ideas that you wanted to bring to the table.

I still remember the day we met at the coffee spot and went through all of the script basically.

We created it there on the fly.

But the experience of just making art that is able to touch people, bring awareness, and I think we'll be able to heal people through this work, it means a lot to me, it's very important.

Well, I think and even in the artistic process that all three of us have been inside to some degree, we've brought these characters to life in such a way where they feel real to us because we are talking about people that we've lived with, that we've experienced, whether it's grandpa feeling like your grandmother because of your experiences, or us talking about our children and how children act in certain situations.

So when you're watching the show, you don't feel like you're watching kind of fictional characters.

You feel like you're watching people that you see every day in your own family.

And I think that's a really important part of what we continue to try to do with the show is keep it fresh, keep it new, keep the dancers engaged, the musicians engaged so that everyone's having a real, honest, creative experience in the moment.

That is healing.

So I was really excited when you brought this project to me, right.

There was, obviously that surrounds the work that you've already done.

So I, I couldn't wait to get started on with you.

And, the process was interesting.

I will say that I haven't worked like this, with anybody else before.

And many of you might not know I'm a jazz musician, a pianist, and a lot of what I write, how I perform is based out of Improvization, and it's also rare for a composer to be in the studio and creating these things.

But I wanted to kind of be there so that we can truly collaborate and make this dream be possible, you know?

So I thought that the coolest experience for me was, being able to improvise with the dancers and have them lead where the music goes, where usually it's the music leading the dance.

But I feel this is unique because it works together like such a balance throughout the creative process.

And part of the thing that was interesting about that process of making things improvizationally I'm a contemporary and modern dance performer and creator, so we also use a lot of improvization, but I think our two worlds come from very different places.

With Improvization, we kind of sound like this magic bubble of this world and how to build these characters.

So everything that you see in the show was birthed out of Improvization, from the characters themselves to the movement to the music, all of it.

And that's what makes part of this work so special, because it was alive and real in the moments that we made them, as opposed to what usually happens is you go away and kind of like scribble on a piece of paper, all the choreography you want to do for all the music when you want to do.

We truly found it in the moments, and one of my favorite scenes in the show is you'll see is the fishing scene with James and Grandpa, and we had Theron on the piano, improvising and the dancers improvising, and it was the most fun I've had in a studio in a long time.

You know, at one point we had one of the dancers throwing the fish around, and you were laughing and they were laughing, and it just felt like this really honest, authentic moment.

So now when you see the choreography, that's what shows up is authenticity inside the work because of what was actually happening in the studio.

- That’s right.

Yeah.

And I think about you, you both have used the language.

A lot of the musicians have become the dancers.

The dancers have become the musicians, and that it's a complete unity, a complete marrying and and coming together in it.

They can't be separated.

- Right.

In the creation of the show, we had the opportunity to travel all around the country, and we had the opportunity to bring our kids some of those times.

So for our children, the show and for our own family, the show has opened up our children's world, and we've had the ability for them to experience and to create their own.

Remember Balloons through this whole process.

So that's been huge, even in our own little family of watching that.

- That’s very true.

And I love, I'm so glad you reminded me of that.

Just watching them experience Chicago and Baton Rouge in all these places, and being in the studio with the dancers and Theron.

And, even your son came with us a couple times.

Iowa is still his favorite place in the world.

But there is something about being parents in doing this, right.

There's something about creating this work that's about a multi-generational family in our kids being around in the process.

Right?

Like as usual.

Like serious artists, right?

Like we don't bring kids into the studio because we're doing serious stuff.

But I think one of the ways it's impacted me most is by our families being a part of this process, by their mere presence.

And is it really show me the importance of kind of not like as artists doing our thing in the dark, in a dark room somewhere where we, you know, exercise our genius and then we bring it out to the world, but letting all parts of our life be in the studio and be a part of that process.

Children bring joy.

- Yeah.

So there's a lot of joy in the show because T was around and Maverick was around and Naomi was around, and I think that’s a part I wasn't expecting.

It's an unexpected outcome of the show is them being a part of the process in a way I wasn’t and seeing, and I think it's kind of impacted how I look at making things forever.

Yeah, you're absolutely right.

And he still talks about those experiences.

And also I've noticed that when he comes with me to other, you know, theaters that we're going to, he knows where he's going, he knows what to do.

And he's telling his mom like, oh, no, we do this during this time.

And we.

So he's a professional now, which is awesome.

- That’s right.

- Yeah, this show has definitely impacted our family in a positive way, just allowing them to see how we create and why we create.

You know, that's been, really nice to share those deep conversations about that.

Yeah.

I think personally too working with you as a collaborator has completely impacted how I make work.

Right?

Like I was so used to being in the studio, making my choreography, putting it in an email and sending it to a composer, and then waiting for like 4 to 6 weeks.

And that music just coming back in an email and we'd be like, all right, let me see if it works.

Yeah.

But being together in a studio and then outside the studio becoming greater friends and so as like we got more connected, our artwork got more connected.

And I've just noticed that.

And notice how much that's impacted me personally, and impacted the work as well.

And I think the performers noticed that in the studio how deeply connected the two of us are.

And it creates a culture inside of our working space that is hard to duplicate.

Yeah.

Yeah, yeah.

I, I love the importance that was placed on reflection and actually not like just navigating tough conversations, even though this is a tough conversation in and of itself, but just within the process, within everything, it's at least for us, it's navigated into other areas in our life of like, okay, what are the questions that we're asking around this?

How do we ask more questions?

Sometimes there isn't an answer that we can actually put our finger on, but we're willing to to go deeper in question.

Oh, that's so good.

I think that speaks to, you know, mirroring how you guys do that.

Your home, it definitely came into the studio in a way of like we research first.

We didn't play a note, dance, move anything.

We were sitting and, you know, we had our whiteboard out and we were going through a lot of information, sharing stories, watching videos on the subject.

So it really comes from a place of, of care with respect.

- That’s right.

We can't minimize the impact that memory loss has on any family member, from the youngest to the oldest, knowing that to care for these individuals who have cared for us.

It really, truly does take everyone participating in it, everyone coming around, everyone in it because it's shifting and altering life at the most basic level to the to the highest level of survival of eating, sleeping, dressing, like to to having conversations, to remembering and, I just.

This is the sixth leading cause of death in America.

It's affected by more than 6 million individuals have it.

So how many more impacted by it?

How many families are out there that are struggling that are trying to figure out how to do this?

And many of them are doing it alone, and many of them are stuck at home caring for their loved ones, struggling, and also just cherishing that person and navigating that.

How do I show up with all of me when this disease is pulling everything from me at the same time and pulling everything from the person themself who's dealing with it?

And I just, I, I have a heart for children in this matter because I was one going through it.

But I have no clue what my parents were going through either.

So I love this show because of what it does and how it reveals with dignity every single, every single generation of those that are going through this.

I think dignity is really important, because often what you'll find is that people who are going through Alzheimer's start to be treated like they’re children, and they're still adults with full lives.

And it's something we used to always talk about with grandpa in the studio.

We can't decide in the show to treat him like he's a child.

He's a man who's lived his full life, and he deserves the dignity of that the entire show.

That's right.

And so when I think about what you went through with your grandma and with grandpa's going through and remembering that we still need to honor those people in their fullness of who they were and who they are today.

And the next day and the next day, no matter how difficult that is.

I'm not saying you can't overestimate - You can't understate how difficult it is to be a caregiver in those situations.

Often you're under-resourced.

Often you're not being paid to do that because it’s your own family members.

But what I do think is really, really important is to continue to honor those people in every stage of their life from the moment they find out they have dementia or Alzheimer’s all the way through the end.

And I think that's something that we tried to do to the point where at the end of the show, you'll notice there's a sense of hope at the end.

And I think you did that beautifully, with the section ‘New Balloons’ at the end.

Yeah.

And you know, in regards to even the music, how to support what you all are saying, I think it was taken into deep consideration of, you know, what does music do for people in your life just in general.

It’s the soundtrack to your life Music's everywhere.

There's usually always some kind of song that might just pop up in your head out of nowhere.

Why?

Because it comforts you.

The vibrations swirl around your body.

It might make you imagine something and you know, throughout this piece, we we try to adapt the music to the scenarios that were going on the time period even.

Geography played a part, and we even went as far into the detail as assigning almost an instrument to that character so that they have a voice in you and that comes back throughout the show.

So music in this case is important not only to the comfort and the soundtrack of your life, but it can rekindle memories as well.

And there's those relatable things that, you know, if somebody plays something, it - it gives you either a feeling, it might not even be the exact memory.

It could be a feeling of something that you felt from the past.

It means a lot that I, you know, my music can make an impact in that way.

I think art making an impact is the reason we made it in the first place.

- Exactly.

And for it to live beyond the stage.

- That's right - That's right.

We really hope you enjoyed the show.

You can visit us at Rememberballoonslive.com.

For more information about the Remember Balloons.