{"id":443927,"date":"2026-01-28T23:26:11","date_gmt":"2026-01-28T23:26:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/443927\/"},"modified":"2026-01-28T23:26:11","modified_gmt":"2026-01-28T23:26:11","slug":"the-two-teabags-bringing-joy-and-connection-to-residents-in-aged-care-homes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/443927\/","title":{"rendered":"The Two Teabags bringing joy and connection to residents in aged care homes"},"content":{"rendered":"

Marina Lee-Warner is a woman of many talents \u2014 a marriage celebrant, an artist and a performer who is fiercely passionate about the arts and bringing entertainment to young and old.<\/p>\n

But the woman known around her home in the New South Wales Upper Hunter as Sparkles the Clown also has a background in aged care, and her latest alter-ego might just be her most rewarding role yet.<\/p>\n

Lee-Warner and fellow entertainer Julie Joy have created an original show, The Two Teabags, aimed squarely at aged care audiences.<\/p>\n

The duo has been performing the “medley of Australiana references” across the Upper Hunter and has now received a Create NSW grant to take the show on the road.<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

Marina Lee-Warner carries a bucket \u2014 not to be kicked! It’s one of many props that feature in the Two Teabags show. (ABC Upper Hunter: Amelia Bernasconi)<\/p>\n

The 2021 Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety estimated that up to 40 per cent of aged-care residents did not receive any visitors.<\/p>\n

“I’ve been very moved by this epidemic of loneliness,” Lee-Warner said.<\/p>\n

“So just to bring in that fun and joy and a bit of human touch and connection, I think is really important.”<\/p>\n

Trolley full of fun<\/p>\n

Lee-Warner plays Marj, a cleaner who yearns for her glory days when she won the 1969 Miss Ty-Ya Duck Downs Showgirl competition.<\/p>\n

\"Two<\/p>\n

Marina Lee-Warner plays a cleaner working in an aged care facility. (ABC Upper Hunter: Amelia Bernasconi)<\/p>\n

Joy is Shirl, a tea lady whose “trolley full of fun” contains a peculiar mix of items from days gone by.<\/p>\n

“It was important to find props that [the residents] could relate to \u2026 in a sense the play was built around the props,” Joy said.<\/p>\n

“I was fixated on the rabbit trap \u2014 that had to be in it,” Lee-Warner said.<\/p>\n

“I said, ‘Jules, how do we build a rabbit trap into the storyline?’<\/p>\n

“Everybody joins in to debate what’s the best way to cook a rabbit.”\"An<\/p>\n

Props from the past help to stir memories and create connections. (ABC Upper Hunter: Amelia Bernasconi)<\/p>\n

Joy, who also has a background in aged care, said the play was specifically designed to be enjoyed by all residents, including those with declining cognitive abilities.<\/p>\n

“It’s enabling conversation, reminiscence, connection,” she said.<\/p>\n

“It’s people turning to the person beside them, who might be from a completely different house or floor in a facility, and saying, ‘Did you have one of those?’ or, ‘I remember that.'”<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

Julie Joy says the show has been designed to appeal to residents who may be facing cognitive decline. (ABC Upper Hunter: Amelia Bernasconi)<\/p>\n

Caitlyn Easey is the residential manager at HammondCare in Scone, where one of the first performances took place.<\/p>\n

“It’s just wonderful \u2014 it just brings so much joy for them,” she said.<\/p>\n

“I think those references back to their generation is what’s really special about it and quite different to other things we’ve had before.”<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

Connecting with the audience is an important part of the show. (ABC Upper Hunter: Amelia Bernasconi)<\/p>\n

Power of music<\/p>\n

Along with playful quips and laugh-out-loud moments, the show also features sing-alongs to old classics such as Waltzing Matilda, and chair dancing for all abilities.<\/p>\n

Joy’s background means she is well-versed in using music and movement as therapeutic tools.<\/p>\n

“The show evolved from what was initially workshopped as just a series of games and activities into a storyline with the music and games built in,” she said.<\/p>\n

Joy said the “mood-enhancing quality” of singing ensured its inclusion in the show.<\/p>\n

“It forms so many different connections in the brain that you could have somebody who cannot speak a sentence, but they can sing a song,” she said.<\/p>\n

And it’s not just the residents who enjoy the experience.<\/p>\n

“We are just loving it,” Lee-Warner said.<\/p>\n

“If I could do this for the rest of my life, I’d be very happy.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Marina Lee-Warner is a woman of many talents \u2014 a marriage celebrant, an artist and a performer who…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":443928,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[27121,230513,10643,64,63,230516,9757,134,230518,203298,230515,230517,230514],"class_list":["post-443927","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-entertainment","tag-aged-care","tag-aged-care-entertainment","tag-alzheimers","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-bringing-connection-to-aged-care-residents","tag-dementia","tag-entertainment","tag-julie-joy","tag-loneliness-epidemic","tag-loneliness-in-aged-care","tag-marina-lee-warner","tag-two-teabags"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/443927","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=443927"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/443927\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/443928"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=443927"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=443927"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=443927"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}