Dramatherapy Skills Training Workshop Module 2

I will be conducting the Dramatherapy Skills Training workshop Module 2 on the 4^th of October 2014. It would be lovely to see those who have attended Module 1, in February  this year(those who attended module 1, I hope that you have had the opportunity to use at least a few  of the techniques learned, in a way which is appropriate for your particular field)

Those who have not attended Module 1 are also welcome to  attend Module 2 as I will be sharing different tools and techniques in Module 2. No pre-requisites are necessary.

If you are a teacher, parent, counselor, psychologist, trainer, artists, and anyone else who wishes to find fun and creative ways to help others, this workshop is for you!

These are some of the feedback received from the Dramatherapy Skills Training workshop Module1 which was conducted on 22^nd February 2014 :

“I believe everyone in the helping profession will benefit from it. I also think that anyone/everyone will benefit from it”

“I feel insightful and it has inspired me to understand myself more and motivated me to change for the better”

“Insightful and introspective”

“It was an eye opening experience. Thank you!”

“I gained more understanding about Dramatherapy and really enjoyed throughout the workshop.”

Hope to see you there! 

These are some pictures from the Dramatherapy Skills Training Workshop Module 1 which was held on 22nd of February 2014

Childrens Program : Magic Keys

I will be conducting a childrens program beginning tomorrow, 10th July 2014. It will be running for 6 weeks sessions, 1.5 hours each session. This program is especially catered in helping children build confidence and self-esteem. It allows them to help explore and express their potential through creative activities and have fun in the process!

Dramatherapy Training in Lebanon "Drama Therapy for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder -Emerging from the Shadows of the Past"

I had the privilege of facilitating an intensive Drama Therapy course in Beirut, Lebanon from 26th May to 1st June 2014. It was implemented by Catharsis - Lebanese Center for Drama Therapy, founded and led by Zeina Daccache, the only qualified Drama Therapist in Lebanon.


The training sessions were held at Haigazian University in Beirut. There were 37 participants. Most of them Lebanese, two from Kuwait and a two from Jordon. Many of them had been in the previous Drama Therapy training which Catharsis has been offering as part of the alternative training route, approved by the North American Drama Therapy Association (NADTA).

As for me, I thoroughly enjoyed conducting the training! The participants were enthusiastic, very creative and very participative and were eager to learn. We even had a participant who is a nun, who was quite participative and got us all laughing in appreciation of her performance on the last day!

We covered quite a lot of ground in terms of techniques and the relevant theoretical explanations.

I also had the opportunity of working at the Baabda women's prison. They have been having Drama Therapy sessions with the staff of Catharsis and I was asked to conduct a 3 hour workshop for two days. On the first day we were delayed due to a massive traffic jam on the highway as it was the Election Day for Syria. There are over a million Syrian refugees who were on their way to vote at their embassy. Ironically, I witnessed a Ferrari which broke down right in the middle of the highway, in the midst of the traffic jam, and people who parked their cars on the sides of the highway and started to walk! By the way, if I owned a Ferrari, I will never ever expect it to break down! So I could empathize with the owner when I saw the expression on his face!

The women at the prison were delightful to work with. They were very creative. The first day we danced and the second day they came up with their own scripts and performed. A few of them were inspired and said that they want to perform more. I was also very touched that they had made a couple of gifts for me as tokens of appreciation. I had intended to watch a belly dance performance while I was in Lebanon…My wish came through when on the second day of working with the women in the prison, I had the honour of watching a belly dance performance by the women to end the workshop. They are amazing dancers!
I would like to thank Zeina Daccache and her team, at Catharsis – the Lebanese Center for Drama Therapy for the opportunity and for such great organization in implementing the training sessions and the workshop. I felt very well taken care of while I was there. I am very impressed by the work they do and by the passion and dedication in which they demonstrate in their work.
I would also like to thank Catharsis for sharing the photos taken during the training.

Dramatherapy Workshop in Australia

In the month of March 2014, I had an opportunity to conduct an Introduction to Dramatherapy workshop at the Australian National University College in Canberra.

The students who attended were from the Introduction to Psychology course. All of the participants were international students from countries such as China, Korea and Indonesia. I would like to thank the Ms. Catherine Laike  for the opportunity to conduct the workshop with her students, and Dr. Ratna Selvaratnam who put us in contact with each other.

The participants were very responsive during the workshop and seem to have enjoyed the experience and said that they had learned something new which they feel would be effective as a form of therapy.  On my part, I enjoyed the process of facilitating as well as interacting with the participants. It was fun! 

Effective Skills to Help Others ..

This workshop is for those who are interested in learning effective skills of helping others. The facilitators: Vanitha Chandrasegaram- Dramatherapist; Loh Sit Fong - Clinical Psychologist.

Attending this workshop will also be a very useful preparation for those who wish to attend the next Dramatherapy Skills Training Workshop series.

http://us8.campaign-archive1.com/?u=62e03072553e1ebff323123e3&id=6d3217e363&e=797ec56cf9

DRAMATHERAPY SKILLS TRAINING WORKSHOP: MODULE 1

by Vanitha Chandrasegaram

What is Dramatherapy?

Dramatherapy comes under the umbrella of Creative Arts Therapies. It utilizes various creative activities to get clients/participants to express and work through their problems/issues.

Creative Arts Therapies is a projective method, which uses  artistic expressions and play as mediums which reflects the events, emotions or state of the mind of the client/participant. The act of doing anything artistic and creative can be in itself therapeutic. Therefore it makes sense to use these tools, giving it a clear structure and boundaries to use it as a form of therapy.

Dramatherapy allows the client/participants to express and work on difficult concerns at a safe distance via the use of the space and the idea of fiction and pretense, which is in theater and drama.

The activities in this workshop will include drama games, movements, role play, story making  and acting

** Dramatherapy is different than Psychodrama.

Objective:

The aim of this workshop is

• To teach participants the tools and methods used in Dramatherapy which may be incorporated  in the  practice/work situations.
• To provide awareness of how creative arts is used in therapy.
• To provide skills and tools which can be incorporated in Personal Development Programs and workshops.
• To provide insights on how creative expressions allow the unconscious/subconscious to express itself.
• To help understand the creative expression and use the information and work using the creative tools to help clients/individuals to create solutions to the challenges they encounter.
• To have fun in the process J

Who Should Attend?

·         Mental health practitioners such as Counselors, Psychologists, Psychiatrists, Social Workers to add on to their tools used in their existing practice.

·         Artists(Actors, Dancers, Visual Artists, Musicians)  who would like to experience and gain some understanding on how the arts is being utilized  in the field of psychotherapy to help understand oneself and others better. It provides an insight of  what else artistic expressions can do, besides being a medium of expression and/or performance.

·         Teachers and those who work with children, adolescents, adults, elderly and in the personal development fields will also benefit by being able to utilize these fun yet profoundly impactful and insightful skills and techniques in their work.

·         Parents who would like to understand and utilize some of the activities in interacting and to have a deeper connection with their children.

·         University /College students, especially those in the field of psychology and performing arts and other adults who are curious

What Would Participants Gain from the Workshop?

• Skills and knowledge to incorporate tools and methods used in Dramatherapy in their practice/work.
• Awareness of how creative arts is used in therapy and how it works
• A certificate of participation.
• Become more in touch with their creative self
• Lots of fun!

Outline of Module:

1. Introduction to Creative Arts Therapies(CAT) and Dramatherapy – concepts, theories and ideas of CAT & Dramatherapy
2. Getting to know yourself and others – Creating a Safe Space and Group Dynamics
3. The Stories of Life – Various tools of story making and ways of exploration
4. Reminiscing, being in the Present and the Dreams of the Future – understanding the thread that connects our life story and the possibility of positive transformation.

** Activities such as movements, dance, voice projections, role play, acting and story making will be used in this workshop.

Facilitator: Vanitha Chandrasegaram (MA Dramatherapy,UK; MSc Psychology, USA;  Member of NADTA,USA;) Pioneer and one of the only two qualified and practicing  Dramatherapist in Malaysia. Nine years of experience practicing Dramatherapy in the UK and Malaysia in settings such as Mental Hospitals and wads, NGOs, Universities. She has conducted Dramatherapy Awareness and Skills Training workshops in India and in Malaysia. Her experience includes working with individuals and groups who has experienced abuse, learning disabilities, mental health, emotional, relationship challenges and various other life challenges. She has worked with individuals and groups ranging from 3 to 90 years old. She has also headed a  home for over 70 underprivileged children from ages 4 to 16.  She has presented in Dramatherapy Conferences in UK and the USA.  Her work has been published in professional journals in the UK, and in a book titled “Drama as Therapy” 2^nd ed., by Phil Jones. She had also lectured in various colleges and universities and taught Theatre for Seniors at for the U3A (University for the 3^rd Age) at UPM.  Her passions also include dancing and playing the flute.

Awakening the Divine Feminine Workshop on 7th December

The 'Awakening the Diving Feminine (Steps to Self-Empowerment & Actualization) Workshop is moved to the Saturday, 7th of December 2013 .  Please see the link below for more information. Call the Violet Flame at Tel: 03-2095 9868 to book a space.
http://www.thevioletflamekl.com/my/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=215