NADTA 2024 Conference

During the lecture/discussion participants will learn about the significance of costuming and textile-arts both culturally and historically in therapy. Being easy to source resources cheaply makes this a very accessible form of intervention, baring disparity in mind. Information will also be given about the areas of the brain that are utilized in these types of interventions as well as hormone production and reduction, keeping in mind the needs of clients with brain damage or hormone-related issues. Examples of drama therapy interventions and practices that utilize costuming will be addressed and new interventions that the presenter is currently writing about will be shared. For the experiential portion, participants will work with a shirt, making cuts to represent issues and problems that have come up in their own lives or in sessions they have conducted. Using colored embroidery thread and fabric scraps to mend the shirt, they will be asked to think about what each of the additions represent. They may choose to add color, pattern, or words with paint pens to emphasize struggles, help, self-talk, etc. Participants will be asked to share what comes to mind looking at the whole piece. Participants may also take home the piece they have created.

"Poetry in Motion - Balade Poetique" is a workshop centered on imagination and movement.

The workshop offers a poetic journey through carefully selected poetic, textual, and musical works, all centered around a theme related to nature and the seasons, leading to an ephemeral poetic performance.

The workshop is adapted to the pace and motor skills of each individual, welcoming all diversities and accessible to everyone.

Members of the Living Arts Playback Theatre Ensemble, Merry Ross and Vicki Dello Joio have come together once again after their successful run of 2 Women, 2 Stories performed from 2012 to 2019. This time they are exploring the transformational nature of mother-daughter relationships in their two self-revelatory pieces. Using autobiographical therapeutic performance techniques including improvisation, developmental transformations and story-telling, they take a deep dive into the trial, tribulations and triumphs of this primal and complex relationship. Merry's solo performance, "This is Why I Pay for My Children's Therapy", is a comic and poignant exploration of her relationships with both her two daughters and her mother and grandmother. It looks at how inter-generational trauma can be addressed and healed, when one is committed to doing it differently. Vicki's solo performance, "It's About Time", navigates the challenging end-of-life journey she travels with her mother, while celebrating and exploring the complex dynamics of their relationship. As Vicki transitions from daughter to mothering her own mother, she finds the humor and sorrow in letting go.