On March 25th and 26th, CAALN TAPTA leaders Nelly Adhiambo and Grace Owino, alongside our first third-year graduate of the TAPTA program Swizen Atwine, facilitated a Therapeutic Arts two-day community workshop in Kampala, Uganda. The workshop brought together a group of 15 participants working in diverse communities across the country – including social workers, counsellors, dancers, visual artists and storytellers. Many of the participants work with, or have lived experience of, being refugees to Uganda.
The program provided an intensive exploration into the synergy between mental health and the arts. The first day had a slow start due to the rain and notorious traffic in Kampala, with many participants travelling for hours to attend the workshop. The morning sessions established a foundation in basic counselling concepts and skills, with a specific focus on applying these concepts with creative frameworks. Therapeutic dance and movement practices were explored through the Laban movement analysis framework to understand the physical dimensions of communication and how workers can practice noticing the people they work with in creative ways.
The second day focused on therapeutic drama (including story development, forum theatre, image-based theatre and role play) to address conflicts and social issues within communities. Of particular interest to the group was how to address and support the prevalence of suicide and its impact on communities. The workshop concluded with frameworks and discussion of self-care practices to support practitioners’ own wellbeing while holding complex therapeutic environments.
The workshop focused on being arts-based in content as well as delivery. The facilitators encouraged participants to engage in art, movement, and drama activities and games that allowed them to have a first-hand experience of what was presented. In the post-workshop evaluation, participants reflected on how engaging the presenters were and how the unique format of active learning and creative participation had made it a meaningful and memorable training.
