A Multi-Lingual Performance-as-research project submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the Master of Arts in Drama Therapy at Drama for Life, A division of the Wits School of Arts Faculty of Humanities, University of the Witwatersrand, March 2017 / This multi-lingual autobiographical performance-as-research (PAR) project critically analyses self-revelatory performance as a drama therapy method that can be used to effectively mitigate the lingering effects of a negative self-concept of Afrikaner identity brought on by the collective trauma of our past in South Africa. The research enquires and demonstrates; in what ways the method of self-revelatory performance is effective in mitigating the effects of collective trauma both on intra-psychic and interpersonal levels through the lived experience of the researcher, training drama therapist and client-performer who underwent a process of devising, scripting, rehearsing, and performing a piece of autobiographical theatre in front of an invited audience. The methodology is firmly located within, and founded on the core principles of art-based research and more specifically, PAR; this choice of method of enquiry is as a result of the performative and embodied nature of the method of self-revelatory performance. The findings of the research are a collaborative process of practice (performance), self-reflexivity and theory working together to answer the research question. The research demonstrates the need for performative methods of drama therapy, such as self-revelatory performance, to be explored within our South African context. The research illuminated the need to adapt the methodology when working with collective trauma in our South African context and the need to clearly define the role of the audience, and the conditions of collective witnessing that determine psychological safety and containment, in the method of self-revelatory performance within our socio-cultural context. / XL2018

A research report submitted to the Wits School of Arts in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Masters of Arts by coursework and research report in the field of Drama Therapy, in the faculty of Humanities, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg. March 2017 / This qualitative research study examines the ways in which embodiment in drama therapy can be an effective intervention aimed at enhancing intercultural communication amongst South Africans. South Africa is a multicultural society owing to the diverse cultures people belong to. Communication is required in order for multiculturalism to succeed and peaceful coexistence to be stimulated. This study involved six participants who engaged in a series of six drama therapeutic group sessions focused on embodiment. Using interpretative phenomenological analysis the study found that the participants were able to enhance the intercultural communication amongst them as well as develop cross-cultural relationships. This research report consists of an exploration of the South African context. Thereafter embodiment, culture and communication are discussed to understand how these aspects influence the participants and their daily lives. Chapter three is the exploration of both globalisation and intercultural communication. Chapter four gives an explication of embodiment as a drama therapy approach and what embodiment offers the individual, followed by chapter five which demonstrates the methodology applied to investigate the method of embodiment. The main chapter of this study is chapter six and discusses the embodied drama therapy process and how it became a comfort zone for the participants in which they could communicate and develop meaningful relationships with the fellow participants. Chapter seven concludes and discusses the limitations and recommendations for the research. The drama therapy methodologies empowered participants and enabled them to think about themselves, their behaviour and how they communicate in a different way. It further enabled unconscious material to surface to the conscious mind, thereby evoking introspection and reflection. / MT 2018

A research report submitted to the Faculty of Humanities, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts (Drama Therapy) March 2017 / The aim of this paper is to explore how Drama Therapeutic techniques can be used in self-care practice to reduce stress, burnout and compassion fatigue amongst community healthcare workers in South Africa. This is achieved by studying the case of the Zakheni Arts Therapy Foundation’s Wellbeing Workshop. The tools utilised by the Wellbeing Workshop are identified and explored to ascertain in what ways they can be useful in self-care practice. Semi-structured interviews are used to gain insight into the tools used most often and found to be most useful by both facilitators and participants in their personal self-care practice. The study shows that the care workers who participated in the Wellbeing Workshop did benefit from the training in that they gained an understanding of importance self-care and did begin to include some self-care practices into their daily routines. Participants did reflect that they found the dramatic tools useful but it is clear that care workers utilise the dramatic tools very differently than the facilitators. This raises questions about the relevance of how Drama Therapy is applied in the South African context as well as around whether drama tools are suitable tools for self-care practice amongst care workers in South Africa. / MT2018

Research report submitted to the Wits School of Arts University of the Witwatersrand, Faculty of Humanities in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts in the field of Drama Therapy, August 2017 / This research aimed to explore problem-saturated narratives about self-efficacy in leadership amongst a group of women leaders from corporate organisations in Johannesburg, and the effectiveness of narradrama (Dunne, 2009) a drama therapy method, in enriching these narratives. Analysis points to the pervasiveness of gendered notions of men and women in society and how this plays out in the contexts of corporate organisations. The rationale for this study was that if corporate leadership is an historically socio-culturally male-dominated and gender-stereotyped domain from which women have been excluded, and in which traits stereotypically associated with women were undervalued, then dominant narratives embedded in this domain could be that women are not effective leaders, and that they do not belong. This could negatively affect perceived self-efficacy in leadership among women, and indirectly, efforts to address gender disparity in the context of corporate leadership. Sociocultural development theory (Vygotsky, 1978), and empowerment theory (Rappaport, 1987, Zimmerman, 2000), both of which assert the primacy of the sociocultural context in learning and development, theoretically informed the research. Thematic analysis was used to identify key themes. The research showed that problem-saturated narratives about leadership self-efficacy did exist and that narradrama proved effective in fostering enriched narrative possibilities amongst participants. / XL2018