Because Dramatherapy is experiential by nature, it's notoriously difficult to explain and to pin down with words. Difficult but not impossible. So read away. Comments and questions welcomed!
What is Dramatherapy?
In the broadest sense, Dramatherapy is a method of play, a means of discovering, unlocking and working with different aspects of yourself in a spontaneous and imaginative way. It’s an active form of therapy that emphasizes movement, voice, characterization, embodiment and expression through drama. The focus is not on performance but on the creative process itself.
The Session
Many materials may be used in a session, including objects, musical instruments, cloth, modeling clay and paints. The main tools, however, are stories, myths and the body, and the session is very much client or group-led. You do as little or as much as you feel is safe; sometimes simply ‘being’ might be what is needed in one session, while in another much activity might emerge. Like other creative therapies (such as Music, Art and Dance), Dramatherapy uses the artistic medium to contain and work with emotions and issues in an indirect way, for example through stories, movement and metaphor.
Session Structure
The session follows a specific structure that helps you feel safe and free to express yourself. It begins with a body and voice warm-up, such as creating a sound and a movement for how you’re feeling. More movement and voice activity may follow, which leads to the main part of the session of working with a story or image. The session then folds out of the imaginative space to a grounding exercise and ending. This structure is known as the Sesame Method, a particular drama and movement practice that incorporates Jungian psychology, the movement notation of Rudolf Laban, and Peter Slade’s discovery of Child Drama. The approach is intuitive and non-judgmental, based in the belief that the unconscious goes towards symbols that are healing for you and your psyche.
More Information
Practicing Dramatherapists must be registered with the Health Professions Council (HPC) Registration is renewed every two years.Visit the HPC website at www.hpc-uk.org. (Dramatherapists are listed under Arts Therapists.)
View the website for the Sesame Institute at www.sesame-institute.org and the site for the British Association of Dramatherapists at www.badth.org.uk.
You can also hear a 10- minute audio clip about Dramatherapy that aired recently on Woman’s Hour on Radio 4: www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/womanshour/ram/2005_30_fri_03.ram
Benefits of Dramatherapy
- Increased self-esteem and confidence
- Greater body and self awareness
- Greater ease in relating to others
- Greater confidence in relationships
- Greater self-acceptance
- More spontaneity
- Increased sense of social connection
- Freedom to play and be silly
- More imaginative outlook
Cost
One hour individual sessions are £35 (sliding scale available, please ask).
