Course Title: Creative Arts Therapy Modality 2 - Dramatherapy and Storytelling

Part A: Course Overview

Course ID: 030304

Course Title: Creative Arts Therapy Modality 2 - Dramatherapy and Storytelling

Credit Points: 12


Course Code

Campus

Career

School

Learning Mode

Teaching Period(s)

PERF2036

City Campus

Postgraduate

360H Education

Face-to-Face

Sem 1 2006,
Sem 1 2007

Course Coordinator: Gerry Katz

Course Coordinator Phone: +61 3 9925 4650

Course Coordinator Email: geraldine.katz@rmit.edu.au


Pre-requisite Courses and Assumed Knowledge and Capabilities

OTED2096 and PERF2037


Course Description

This course is designed to provide students with opportunities to apprehend and discern, phenomena related to dramatherapy and storytelling, and to experience working in and with, these creative mediums. The emphasis is on gaining both knowledge and understanding of the therapeutic value of the creative processes located within these art forms.


Objectives/Learning Outcomes/Capability Development

The student will be expected to:
• demonstrate an understanding of the potentially transformative and therapeutic effects of engaging with drama and storytelling
• critically analyse the theoretical assumptions underpinning these creative arts as therapy
• demonstrate an understanding of your own relationship to these arts modalities.
• Analyse the therapeutic values of these modalities, individually and integratively



Overview of Learning Activities

Student learning will be facilitated through/within a series of experiential, interactive and didactic workshops which examine the materials, structures and ways of understanding these arts forms, what they evoke, and their uses in creative arts therapy. Students will be expected to come to each workshop with questions generated by their readings, as well as an enthusiastic interest to actively engage and anticipate in the learning experiences. Each workshop will provide time to discuss the process of the work, i.e., what has transpired and what did it mean. The last hour of the day will be given over to reflective process, small group discussion and then closure in the large group. 

 STUDY PROGRAM
The study program consists of three weekend workshops focusing on the creative arts therapy processes of drama in/as therapy, used individually and integratively. It explores the enactment of theoretical and practice elements, and the potential integration of other arts modalities.

Weekend 1 Saturday - Dramatherapy – didactic/experiential 
                      Sunday - Drama as therapy – didactic/experiential

Weekend 2 Saturday - Drama as therapy – didactic/experiential 
                      Sunday - Drama/Psychodrama – didactic/experiential

Weekend 3 Saturday - Drama as therapy - didactic/experiential 
                      Sunday - Drama as therapy - didactic/experiential  

Synthesis - Drama as therapy - Assessment 
                    - small-group presentations

• In keeping with the philosophy of learning within the Creative Arts Therapy program, students are responsible for completing all directed/required readings for each class/workshop.
• Each student will be asked to evaluate the course according to preset criteria. The evaluation form allows for personal comments and is submitted anonymously.)


Overview of Learning Resources

Required Reading:
Warren, Bernie (Ed) 1984. Using the Creative Arts in Therapy: A practical introduction
(2nd Edition). London. Routledge. Chapters 8 & 9
And as assigned and Collected Articles on Closed Reserve, RMIT Library)

Suggested Reading/Texts (the following is a sample list)

Dramatherapy: Works by such authors as, Boal, Jennings; Jones; Landy;
Boal, Augusto. (2000) The Rainbow of Desire New York. Routledge
(1997) Games for Actors and Non-Actors New York. Routledge
Jennings, Sue. (1994) Dramatherapy Theory and Practice 1* London JKP*
(1996) Dramatherapy Theory and Practice 2 London JKP*
Jenkyns, Marina (1996) The Play’s the Thing: Exploring Text in Drama and Therapy
London. Routledge.
Jones, Phil (1997) Drama as therapy; Theatre as Living London. Routledge*
Landy, Robert. (1996) Essays in Drama Therapy: The Double Life London. JKP*
MacDougall, J. & Yoder, Stanley (Eds.) (1998) Contaminating Theatre: intersections of
theatre, therapy and public health. Evanston. Northwestern University Press.

* on closed Reserve - Carlton Library **JKP – Jessica Kingsley Publisher


Overview of Assessment

The assessment for the course will take the form of a submitted portfolio, and will contain the following materials. Due dates to be negotiated with the course facilitators.
a) Small-group, oral presentation of an exploration of creative processes as found in the experiential and theoretical learning plus Individual written outline of the process of designing the project and developing the presentation (500-700) words (40%)
b) Literature Review (3500 words max.) examining the literature of dramatherapy and storytelling as set out by selected authors in both areas of practice. (50%)
c) Self-assessment using the learning log (10%)