What is Wanted to Believe, and how did it come to be?
Wanted to Believe is a single from Big Man, a yet-to-be-released musical with book/lyrics by me, Sheryl Berk, and music by Billy Recce, currently in development with a veteran Broadway team. The show explores dementia, caregiving, memory, and imagination through the lens of a family navigating Alzheimer’s disease together.
The single, due to be released this June 19 in conjunction with Alzheimer’s & Brain Awareness Month, is performed by Tony-nominated Broadway and West End star Ramin Karimloo and serves as a deeply emotional moment for the character, Brian, who is a son struggling to reconcile the father he idolized with the realities of Alzheimer’s disease.
The song is about grappling with the memory of the hero someone was in their lifetime and the person who now stands before you, forever changed by the disease. It explores the heartbreak, confusion, love and longing that so many families experience while trying to hold onto connection through memory loss.
Our hope is that caregivers who hear this song will feel seen, heard, and less alone. We also hope the project sparks larger conversations about how we support caregivers and preserve dignity and identity for those living with dementia.
Who initially inspired you to grapple with dementia?
My inspiration came directly from my late father-in-law, who lived in a memory care unit for several years while battling dementia. During one visit, I showed him photographs from a Frank Sinatra exhibit, and suddenly he lit up—singing songs, telling stories, and reconnecting with parts of himself we thought had faded away. That moment became the emotional seed for Big Man.
I realized music and imagination could act as bridges into memory and identity. Rather than telling a story solely about decline, I wanted to create something that captured the humanity, humor, resilience and emotional complexity of families living through this experience together.
How has working on dementia-related art changed you?
I’ve been a New York Times-bestselling author and theater journalist for more than 25 years, and in many ways, writing Big Man and the song Wanted to Believe feels like my second act as an artist.
Working on this project has profoundly changed the way I think about aging, memory, and storytelling. It made me realize how invisible older adults and caregivers often become in our culture, despite the extraordinary emotional journeys they are living every day.
Artistically, it pushed me toward deeper emotional honesty. I became less interested in neat resolutions and more interested in capturing contradiction: grief alongside joy, fantasy alongside heartbreak, humor alongside fear. This project also expanded my understanding of what musical theater can do. It can entertain while also creating empathy, dialogue, and community healing. It can be a cultural impact initiative as well as a performance.
How has Wanted to Believe been received?
The response has been incredibly emotional and affirming. During an early concert presentation at a senior living community’s Alzheimer’s fundraiser, audience members—including caregivers and residents living with memory loss—openly wept, sang along, and shared their own stories afterward. The event became the centerpiece of the fundraiser and helped raise over $100,000 for the Alzheimer’s Association.
Many caregivers have told us they felt truly “seen” for the first time. Others shared that the music helped them reconnect emotionally with loved ones living with dementia.
We hope the broad release of Wanted to Believe will widen that audience even further and create more discussion, empathy and connection around the realities of caregiving and dementia.
This work is dedicated to: My late father-in-law, Alan Berk, lovingly known as “Papa,” whose spirit, humor, imagination and love of the Rat Pack inspired the entire musical. Even as dementia progressed, music remained a profound source of connection, comfort, and joy for him.
The piece is also a tribute to every caregiver riding the daily emotional rollercoaster of dementia care, especially my mother-in-law, Barbara Berk, who carried the role of primary caregiver with extraordinary strength, devotion and grace.
Find more from the creators of Big Man on the web and Instagram. Wanted to Believe is streaming on all major platforms, including Apple Music and Spotify. Proceeds benefit the Alzheimer’s Association.
