wolf + water arts company

Wolf + Water arbeider med mennesker med psykiske lidelser i en bred setting - i sykehus, gjennom støtteordninger og gjennom frivillige grupper og organisasjoner.

5-7 December 2007 Edinburgh

A three day course on using drama and theatre techniques with young people who have sexually concerning behaviour

A weekly Arts & video magazine project based at North Devon District Hospital.

(Nationwide 1992 - 2001)

Wolf + Water have run a huge array of drama sessions & workshops for people with mental health issues throughout the UK & Eire, sometimes working within statutory services, on other occasions working with groups from organisations such as MIND & NSF, & including the elderly mental ill.

This course explores the uses of drama, visual arts & movement when working with children & young people who have been the victim of psychological, sexual or physical abuse.

The course covers:

1. Creating perceptions of safety
2. Variations of response - different types & durations of abuse & their possible implications
3. Using drama & arts to work with mistrust & anger
4. Drama & Arts in reframing & understanding the past
5. Saying “no”
6. Skills & confidence building - looking to the future

Explores with staff some of the basic techniques in setting up & executing a drama based programme of work for recreation or social skills with people with mental health problems. Topics covered include:

1. basic group work skills with vulnerable clients
2. using drama to explore communication & interpersonal skills
3. drama to enhance self esteem
4. drama to explore problem solving
5. how to put on performance & to involve “non actors”

(Birmingham, UK, 2000)

A 3-day national conference & celebration held at Midlands Arts Centre of various arts & mental health initiatives from throughout the country. Wolf & Water provided a workshop that demonstrated some of the techniques we have used to work with men with problems of anger & violence, & hosted one of the discussions, & ran a creative workshop for an excellent bunch of mental health service users from Kidderminster.

A course covering all aspect of brief & long term behaviour modification for offenders with problems with anger & violence difficulties. Course includes:

1. Techniques for cognitive awareness & intervention in high risk situations
2. Using drama to create an accessible “language of anger”
3. Drama & arts to explore core roots of angry behaviours
4. Working with depression - the domain of inverted anger
5. Breaking dynamics & rehearsing for the future

(see also the Defusing Bombs project).

A training course for those working with clients on issues of self esteem & peer pressure & the relationship between these & offending behaviour. Course includes:

1. Working with issues of anger & depression
2. Drama & arts to create an accessible language of self esteem
3. Drama to fight the internal critics
4. Breaking dynamics & rehearsing for the future

(Exeter, Devon 1999).

Wolf + Water were theatre company in residency for this multi agency conference exploring therapeutic approaches to working with both the victims & perpetrators of child sexual abuse. The final performance was a difficult & sensitive piece of work that aimed to sum up the key themes of the conference in a human rather than academic way, exploring the impact of work on both victims & those professionals working with them. Wolf + Water also ran a workshop on the use of active drama techniques in treating perpetrators.