“Are We There Yet?”: Challenging Notions of Age and Aging Through Intergenerational Performance

Abstract

This article discusses “Are We There Yet?”, the culminating performance in a 14-week intergenerational workshop exploring issues of age, aging, and the so-called “generation gap.” Participants in the project revised previously-held stereotypes associated with age and aging, coming to view themselves less as “two generations” (under 25 and over 60) and more as both unique individuals and as a unified whole. Problematically, revised stereotypes of old age may have been replaced with unrealistically positive views of aging for the young people involved. Ultimately, the performance served as a reminder to live life fully and in the present.