Drama by Jarrah Staggard

I think when most people hear the word “drama” they think of traditional images of theatre. Perhaps the more cutting-edge will bring up an image of a bizarre and modern piece of performance art. Whatever the association, I think that many people will think of drama as a form, a product, an outcome. What this limited view fails to encompass is possibly the most fundamental and powerful thing of drama: that it is a process.

I first encountered drama as a child. I was a particularly shy child, softly spoken and timid. I was at a new school and was, to the best of my eleven year old abilities, trying to come to terms with massive changes in my family circumstances. The school ran a drama program which culminated in a play by the older students. To be perfectly honest I’m not even entirely sure how it happened, but I went from being the child sitting alone during break times, to performing before my class, and then the entire school community and families. I was singing and acting; facing my fears and challenges and quietly discovering a passion which would lead me to encounter the tools and self understanding that would allow me to thrive. I went on from this experience to study drama, art and film and television in high school. I became involved in amateur theatre outside of school hours and finally went on to study drama at university. During this time I met many people, both teachers and other young people, reaping the benefits of drama. I look back at nearly 13 years of experience in drama and ask myself - what is it I’ve learnt from this and how?

I think one of the problems with discussing drama, and within that its benefits and applications for people, is that it touches on a place of that ineffable thing we might think of as the soul. The creative space that drama opens up for us, is a place of profound discovery and self transformation.

I could list the benefits I have observed in myself and others during my experience. They might include improved confidence and a sense of self-worth, an ability to concentrate and focus, enhanced empathy and understanding of others, initiative and innovative thinking, problem solving and communication skills, improved physical and emotional health, an enhanced ability to make informed and insightful decisions, flexibility and adaptability, freed imagination, self-discipline…. the list seems endless! But these just do not express the fullness of what it is that I find most valuable in all this experience. They are still addressing drama as a form, as an outcome, and as a definable product.

I think I was fairly lucky at school and the academic side of things came easily to me, but it was in the creative experiences, in the processes of drama, that I truly came to know what power and success meant within my self. One benefit for young people that is often associated with drama is confidence; it is certainly true that I have developed confidence and am now much more comfortable speaking in front of a large group of people. To me however this seems only a superficial perspective. To better understand why drama is so valuable to young people we must look deeper, inward. For me the realization of confidence, the discovery of power, came from profound insights into my self and an understanding of the relationships around me. During creative process a whole new intelligence is engaged, seemingly magical transformations are possible: the actor becomes another character, the clay becomes a sculpture of beauty, and the hidden nebulous mysteries of ones self can become illuminated.

People have come to recognize the complex nature of intelligence - or really intelligences. While information and facts can be taught, it is difficult to teach or train intelligence, particularly these more vague forms of emotional and creative intelligence. Through creative process it is possible to open a space for the participant to engage their creativity and let it reveal to them how they can work with it. It’s not a process of teaching intelligence but a process of allowing intelligence to teach us. Drama is a portal through which participants can discover things about themselves, can process the experiences, conditioning and values that create their sense of identity, can gain insight into the treasures within them, insights into their phenomenal abilities and potential, and embody and live these things. I have seen trauma dissolve, fear become healthfully integrated, self-love realized, mysteries of the human condition learned - I have been magically transported to the place of that question: “What is the meaning of life?” and I have discovered an answer within myself. What a tremendous thing to realize my own significance, my own meaning and then carry that out into my life and live it! Drama has opened up all the doors within me and shed light into each room. I have realized wholeness, significance and the epitome of success, and as I grow and change the skills and understandings I have learnt from drama allow me to understand each new experience and be a participant, an agent of my own creation. To become who I need to be, and become who I wish to be.

Drama has given me an array of tools with which to thrive in the world. It has given me an awareness of my body, of emotions and expressions with which to effectively communicate with other people. It has given me the opportunity to look within and discover the treasures that I am made from, leading me to experience true joy within. It has taught me to value myself. It has taken me to the edge of my power and shown me an endless panorama, a sea of stars and suns to draw on. It has activated and awakened my imagination, allowing me to envision my goals and dreams and create an infinite number of pathways forward. I think most of all drama has gifted me with a full sense of my self, what might be called a holistic awareness, and from this understanding of whole I can weave together the gifts of vision, power, awareness and joy and propel myself into my destiny and achieve my full potential.

Friday, 19 February 2010 21:21