Trauma and dramatherapy: dreams, play and the social construction of culture

Abstract

The article explores the ways in which the therapeutic potentials of drama can connect to individuals and groups who have experienced 'trauma'. Three questions are used to structure the enquiry: Are dreams and dramatherapy related to trauma, and if so how? Can we see trauma as socially constructed? Can play help to resolve people's experiences of trauma? First the relationship between dreams and dramatherapy is discussed as a way of illuminating some of the processes which can occur in work involving those who have experienced trauma. This is followed by a review of the relationships between the concept that trauma is socially constructed and dramatherapy. The third section explores how play features in dramatherapy's engagement with clients who have experienced trauma. A case example of Abui, a child refugee from Sierra Leone, is examined from the perspective of the three questions.

Authoring War Memories: War Memoir Writing and Testimonial Theatre Performances

“…In their article, "Drama Therapy in the Treatment of Combat-related Post-traumatic Stress Disorder" (1997), Miller and Johnson illustrate how the use of the arts has become an established treatment option for such patients. Nowadays, dramatherapy is, in many countries, a regulated form of therapy which uses the performance arts as the central element within the therapeutic relationship (Jones 2015).…”

The Trauma in Langston Hughes’s Mulatto

“…Her nightmare, though it functions as a prophecy, is evidence that traumatic conditions occupied her mind entirely. Concerning survivor's dream Phil Jones (2015) writes: -A dream of someone who has experienced trauma is seen as something that reflects and tells about the trauma . .…”

“…What makes the audience open-mouthed is that Norwood in essence is a kind person: (Pederson, 2014, p.339), because in his dream, the howling dogs remind him of the event. Phil Jones (2015) writes that -dreaming and the dream can repeat and deepen the trauma in that its images and emotional process can take the individual back to the trauma‖ (p. 6). Thus, Norwood himself is another character in the play who is a victim of trauma and suffers from PTSD.…”