Drama Therapy 101
Relational Drama Therapy
11, 12 oct 2025
in-person training hours
x Offline Assignment Hours
Sessions
Power of Drama Therapy
Overview
This two-day intensive workshop, Relational Drama Therapy, offers a transformative immersion into the therapeutic power of dramatic enactment, centred around the cultivation of healthy relationships. Drawing from Group Drama Therapy practices and Theatre of the Oppressed, this workshop explores interpersonal dynamics through the lenses of gender, sexuality, identity, power, and conflict. Participants will engage in experiential processes that integrate dramatic role-play, improvisation, storytelling, and embodied exploration to unpack relational patterns and rehearse new ways of relating.
Rooted in the belief that relationships are both a mirror and a container for healing, this workshop invites participants to investigate the roles they inhabit in their lives and relationships, while building awareness of how systems of power and identity intersect in these dynamics.
Drawing from Augusto Boal’s Theatre of the Oppressed, the workshop incorporates liberatory and participatory approaches to confront oppressive narratives and explore alternate, life-affirming ways of being.
Relational Drama Therapy centres on the premise that healing and transformation are inherently relational processes. By examining how we relate to ourselves, others, and the world, we create possibilities for authentic connection, self-empowerment, and relational repair
Objectives
- Introduce Drama Therapy principles and techniques focused on relationships
- Explore relational patterns and dynamics through role-play, improvisation, and embodiment
- Engage with themes of identity, gender, sexuality, and power in personal and collective contexts
- Cultivate skills for emotional expression, boundary-setting, empathy, and relational awareness
- Provide a safe and inclusive space to process conflict, navigate vulnerability, and foster transformation.
Outcomes
- Enhanced emotional literacy and relational intelligence
- Increased self-awareness and insight into how identity and power operate in relationships
- Practical skills for navigating conflict, setting boundaries, and co-creating connection
- Greater confidence and creativity in expressing needs and truths within relationships
- The experience of psychological release, healing, and growth through dramatic engagement
Approach
This highly experiential workshop blends individual reflection, paired interactions, and group enactments. Participants will work with dramatic tools such as image theatre, forum theatre, and role-reversal to explore relational themes. The environment is intentionally crafted to prioritise psychological safety, mutual respect, and consent, allowing for deep engagement and risk-taking within a supported container.
Target Audience
- Primary Audience: Individuals interested in developing healthier relationships – romantic, familial, social, or professional – through creative, embodied exploration
- Secondary Audience: FECAT students and experienced practitioners in expressive or body-based modalities seeking to integrate relational Drama Therapy methods into their practice.
x Syllabus
01.
Unveiling Art Therapy – A Culturally Grounded Introduction
02.
Ancient Wisdom & Modern Approaches – Art for Healing Across Time
03.
The Mind-Body-Spirit Connection – Theories Informing Art Therapy
04.
Materials as Metaphors – Exploring the Therapeutic Qualities of Art
Program begins October 2025
Structure
In-person training
12 hours of in-person training, Sat and Sun
x offline assignments
Shared at the end of each training week
reading material
List shared with the participants
aesthetic responses
Art journalling to express the felt sense
Fee
Saturday & Sunday
11, 12 October 2025
10 am – 5 pm
2 sessions x 6 hrs = 12 hrs
SMArT Studio, Ulsoor
INR 14400 + 18% GST
We would like to extend our support to participants from caste and gender minorities (SC/ST/OBC/DBA/LGBTQIA+). Once we reach a sustainable number of participants and break even, we would be happy to extend meaningful support as scholarships/waivers/
Faculty
Evan Hastings is an internationally respected Drama Therapist, Creative Arts Therapist, and educator whose work blends therapeutic depth with artistic innovation. With over two decades of global experience, he has facilitated trauma-informed, arts-based processes in 18 countries across universities, prisons, hospitals, and conflict zones. Evan is the founder of Shadow Liberation, a participatory theatre methodology merging Drama Therapy, Theatre of the Oppressed, and shadow play to address sexual assault prevention. His teaching practice includes appointments at Harvard Graduate School of Education, Lesley University, University of Otago, St. Xavier’s College Mumbai, National Institute of Design, Antioch University Seattle, Azim Premji University and Srishti Manipal Institute. His facilitation is grounded in deep listening, co-design, and a commitment to social justice. From working with incarcerated men on masculinity and violence to creating interactive shadow installations that explore public participation, Evan’s work attends to aesthetics and transformation alike.
