For seniors: Simple and exciting! Ideas for staff performances
In many nursing and welfare facilities, events that match the season and special occasions are often held, right?
Aren’t the staff the ones planning and hosting summer festivals, Respect-for-the-Aged Day celebrations, Christmas events, and more?
You want to put on performances and entertainment that will delight the elderly at these events.
So this time, we’re introducing “Simple! Staff Performance Ideas.”
We’ve included easy options that you can pull off even when you don’t have many days to prepare or much time to practice.
We’ve gathered a wide range of ideas—from things staff can perform to activities in which the elderly can participate.
Use this article as a reference to help your event come alive and turn into a wonderful day.
- [For Staff] Energize Your Nursing Home Respect-for-the-Aged Day! Performance Ideas Full of Laughter and Emotion
- Entertainment and Performances That Delight at Day Services for the Elderly
- For Seniors: Fun Entertainment That Excites at Nursing Homes
- [For Staff at Elderly Care Facilities] Simple Performances to Liven Up a Year-End Party
- Recommended fun performances that will appeal to elderly people
- Performances to Liven Up New Year Parties for Elderly Care Facility Staff
- For Seniors: Fun for Everyone! Christmas Party Activity Ideas
- [Respect-for-the-Aged Day Celebration] Crowd-Pleasing Performances: Ideas That Staff Can Enjoy Too
- [Respect-for-the-Aged Celebration] Guaranteed to Get Everyone Excited! Introducing Perfect Plans to Celebrate Longevity
- Entertainment ideas for year-end parties that seniors will enjoy
- [Christmas Party at the Nursing Home] Staff Take on the Challenge! Fun Performances Everyone Can Enjoy
- [Respect-for-the-Aged Day Celebration] Laughter All Around! Ideas for Performances and Games You Can Enjoy While Seated
- For Seniors: Fun and Lively Exercise Recreation
[For Seniors] Easy and Exciting! Staff Performance Ideas (21–30)
Finger Action ‘A Whole New World’
Finger actions that could stir a buzz, performed in an all-black outfit.
Finger action is a style of performance where both hands move to the rhythm or music to express something.
Staff members, dressed like stagehands in black, wear only colorful work gloves—red, yellow, green—and use just their hands to perform.
Christmas carries a mysterious and romantic atmosphere, doesn’t it? For that kind of presentation, we recommend “A Whole New World” from the Disney film Aladdin.
A finger-action performance set to “A Whole New World” can create a lovely show that will entrance older adults as well.
line dance
The charm of line dancing lies in performers lining up in a row on stage and moving in sync with the same choreography and steps.
I imagine older adults would be moved to see the staff’s neatly coordinated steps right in front of them.
If it’s a performance for a Christmas party, it’s also a great idea for all the dancers to wear matching costumes like Santa Claus or reindeer.
A line dance set to Christmas-themed music would likely get the whole venue buzzing with excitement.
It could also serve as a conversation starter between staff and older adults in the days that follow.
puppet show
Puppet shows, which use puppets to present stories, seem to be something we see less often as we grow older.
This project aims to recreate well-known tales through puppetry and let audiences experience the world of those stories.
Even if you already know the plot, seeing it enacted through real movement may lead to new discoveries.
The variety of ways to arrange it—such as which kinds of puppets to use and what mechanisms to incorporate—is another point of enjoyment.
Doppelganger Doll: Bride Samba
The mini double-act dolls that were popular on variety shows back in the day could be a fun idea to liven up a seniors’ gathering.
If you dance to songs that older people are likely to find nostalgic—like Hiromi Go’s “Yome Samba”—it’s sure to get big laughs.
Of course, it’s not just the dolls; the makeup and costumes of the person controlling them are also important, so we recommend getting creative.
It’s the kind of act that will brighten up the event because it’s easy to enjoy without overthinking.
Kiyoshi’s Zundoko Song
Let’s perform a celebratory dance to Kiyoshi Hikawa’s signature song, “Kiyoshi no Zundoko Bushi.” The fact that it’s a gentle enka number is a big point—it can help not only the dancers but also the audience feel relaxed as they watch.
Since the song doesn’t have fixed choreography, deciding what kind of movements to use is important; imagining something like a Bon Odori style might make it easier to understand.
Put care into the costumes as well, and make sure to convey both the joy of matching movements to the song and the spirit of celebration.
loach scooping
Dojo-sukui is a dance that can be called a traditional performing art, performed to the folk song “Yasugibushi” from Yasugi City in Shimane Prefecture.
With comical movements that suggest bending low at the waist to scoop up loaches, it expresses a sense of fun.
The costume is important for creating its distinctive atmosphere—wear a tenugui headcloth and a coin-shaped nose piece (modeled after an old one-mon coin), among other details.
While the loach-scooping motion is the classic motif, there are actually no fixed steps, so the performer’s ad-libbing is put to the test.
Little Dance
It’s a dance performed with a uniquely shrunken look, where each movement exudes cuteness.
With the gimmick of only the face being real and the rest a doll, it really tests the skill of how comically you can make the movements appear.
Since the motions of the arms and legs tend to be simple, it’s also recommended to exaggerate facial expressions to bring out the humor.
There are plenty of elements you can get particular about—what kind of movements to show to what kind of music, what costumes to use, and so on.