dance : art : drama : music
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“People have in-built therapeutic mechanisms which help them deal with their day-to-day life and unexpected; through enactment we are empowered to act – acting helps ‘act’.”
(Jennings, et. al. 1994) |
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In the workshops we use drama in many different ways. It can be used to create performances that can either be focused relating on issues or just for fun. When the clients have fun with drama this helps enhance their experience, making it more memorable. Drama can be educational, therapeutic and fun. The creative process is the most important element so we elaborate on this. We use many different Theatre and drama techniques to help create a structure that is most effective for each client group:
This is the basis of all dramatic activity. It is the process of one taking on a role that is other than themselves. By adopting a role clients can explore emotions, issues, and knowledge. The use of masks and props allows for the clients to explore different characteristics for one person in the role-play. Role-plays can also include play acting and dramatic play which can either be guided or free.
This basically uses theatre as a tool for learning. Theatre companies will perform a programme that is delivered by a group of actor-teachers and they will look at issues with people for educational purposes. The programme includes a performance followed by an interactive element. It aims to entertain, educate, widen their horizons and influence them to ask questions about the world around them. The interactive element includes role play, games, simulation, song and music, quiz show style presentations, and encouraging the audience to make a choice. The audience will learn by observing the piece and the interaction enables them to go further with their experience, which will reflect in their understanding of the real world.
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We use this technique in our workshops to create such programmes and also as a tool during the workshops. For example we devised a TIE programme that explored issues in hospitals; we devised a piece of theatre and finished with a quiz show style presentation. Read more about the play in our past events page.
Using this method meant that the programme was more interactive and most importantly empowered the audience – rather than projecting the ‘right’ or ‘wrong’ answer to the audience we provided a space for discussion. This encourages the audience to find the answers from their own source of knowledge, thus empowering them.
Within workshops we use this technique to explore, focus and learn about issues through the clients’ own source of knowledge. For example, we recently worked with the learning - disabled on the theme ‘Health’. We created scenes that were based on accidents – e.g. someone getting burnt. After watching the performance we quizzed the clients with questions such as ‘How can this be prevented?’ The clients then have the freedom to answer and we can then explore the answers with more theatre if necessary.
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This
is not a performance to an audience as instead it uses the art form within the classroom as an educational teaching method. It is a method and a subject for people of all ages allowing them to dramatically explore the curriculum. It incorporates elements of an actor’s training to facilitate the client’s physical, social, emotional and cognitive development, also employing elements of theatre such as props, lighting, and sound.
Taking on roles within the drama will help clients overcome fears, increase self awareness, and improve their clarity and creativity in communication - this can be done in non verbal as well as verbal ideas.
These roles vary from director, writer, and designer to an audience member, giving them different experiences. The experience aids the personal development of the participant, which will reflect in their everyday life and understanding of the world.
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A character is seated in front of the rest of the group (playing an audience role) and is questioned about their characteristics. Questions are used to find out more about the character and to learn their motives, background and behaviour. This method can be used to help a client develop their chosen character; making it easier to enact and understand. For people with learning disabilities this can help them to clearly understand that they are playing a role that is not themselves. This method challenges the client’s imagination, confidence, creativity and empathy for others.
A technique found by Augusto Boal. This is where you perform a piece of drama, (this could be one scene or a play) that is performed twice and on the second showing the audience play a spectator role. Here they can stop the action and step forward to take the place of the oppressed actor on stage. They then have the opportunity to act in the way they would in this given scenario, thus changing the situation. The rest of the actors on stage remain in character and improvise their response.
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At Inspirative Arts we use this tool to help empower clients’ learning. This technique gives them the opportunity to explore and experiment with many different outcomes, as well as experience other clients’ opinions and contributions – this will encourage the clients to learn through their own source of knowledge therefore making it empowering and much more memorable.
In the early years of life ,“We learn about outcomes of choices, we rehearse those skills we may need in later life, we are able to project into the future and test both out realities and our dreams.” (Jennings, et. al. 1994) Many adults need the opportunity to engage in dramatic play to help self-healing. |
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