You wouldn't think there would be anything to laugh about during a play about Alzheimer's. However, Ewing Ventures' production of “Last Lists of My Mad Mother” illuminates humorous aspects of the communications and relationships between an aging parent and her daughters, as well as between siblings dealing with a declining parent. Along with the very moving, sad realities about a terrible disease, there are oft-times witty exchanges that happen between people who care deeply for each other.

“Last Lists of My Mad Mother,” written by Julie Jensen, is an insightful and accurate look at a disease that steals the memory and intellect of a sufferer and the effect it has on and between her children. Yes, there are difficult parts, when tears were shed by most everyone in the audience, either because they were empathizing with the characters or because something said or done resonated within their own experiences with a loved one. I used up a few tissues during the play, as did most of the men and women sitting around me. But the often clever dialog and the characters' interactions, all which ring completely true, also elicited out-loud laughs from attendees.

The dialog and acting are so natural that I felt as if I were eavesdropping on a family's exchanges. Real people speak and act towards each other the way these characters do. The caregiver daughter, Dot, is so well played by Lois Masten Ewing that you absolutely feel her frustration, love, sadness and anger, all mixed together towards both her mother and sister.

Corinne Gelfand plays Ma with such a blend of sweetness, stubbornness and, at times, painful blankness that she masterfully captures the devastation of dementia. Andrea Fox as Sis, the daughter who gives advice by telephone but is absent for any caretaking, spot-on personifies the sibling you dislike for being self-righteous and frivolous.

Director Scott Ewing seamlessly combines his characters, the action and the story so that it seems like the audience is part of Dot's dementia support group, listening to her share her story. Making it even more authentic, the set is an actual part of the community room at Quail Ridge Senior Living in Grass Valley. After the play, the audience could join in a facilitated discussion with experts on Alzheimer's.

I highly recommend this production, both for its value as a moving and insightful performance and for its truthfulness about a devastating disease. It plays through April 3.

Hindi Greenberg congratulates Ewing Ventures on its stated goal to present socially relevant and educational plays. Good theater doesn't have to be vapid theater — it can have a message and a meaning..