Drama Research

This study explores practitioners’ reflections on dramatic co-creation with children, focusing on manifestations of agency and empowerment, the role of facilitators, and barriers to co-creation.

In this piece, the author employs narrative analysis inspired by Russian Formalism to explore content and form of Jon Fosse’s illustrated children’s book, ‘The Fiddler Girl’ [Spelejenta] (2009). Fosse is the Nobel Prize Laureate in Literature for 2023. By drawing on the tradition of fairy tales, the analysis examines how themes of empowerment and quest enhance each other within the story. Supplemented by educational drama theory from the legacy of Dorothy Heathcote, and close reading as a main tool, the author presents a practical arts-based workshop example of how a fairy tale can inspire and be transformed into a story drama.

This article is a review of the workshop conducted at the Heathcote Now Conference, November 2024, led by Tim Taylor, alongside Richard Kieran and Lisa Hinton from Woodrow First School, Redditch. The content of the workshop was originally taught across Woodrow First School in the summer of 2024.

This article presents the activities of an inter-institutional and outreach research project carried out in partnership between teachers and children in the state of Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil.  It highlights the unique features of drama in education in Brazil, as outlined through this experience, which connects socio-environmental issues of Brazil’s threatened biomes with the country’s cultural diversity. We discuss how five basic dramatic conventions— pre-text, episodes, processes, fictional context, and role experience — are developed within a process drama entitled Mythological Onça Pintada, implemented in this context. The experience fosters a connection between children, teachers, and researchers with nature, imagination, and the wisdom of traditional Brazilian cultures, offering sensitive and creative pathways to engage with themes related to the climate crisis and socio-environmental education in Brazilian primary schools.

This paper is written from a presentation at the Dorothy Heathcote Now! conference held at Goldsmiths November 2024. It examines a particular moment recorded within an interview which was part of my doctoral thesis: In Two Minds: What Happens when we Think in Role?

The narrative begins with the interviewee’s statement:

Drama helped me escape my reality and face it at the same time (Kiara 2019).

This paradox forms the thematic core of the study, which uses Kiara’s recollection of a drama exercise where she saw herself depicted by another student. The article uses this moment to explore how being in role can catalyse self-recognition and healing transformation.

Pre-service primary teachers often lack confidence in teaching drama. This can be compounded by school placement experiences with in-service teachers who similarly lack confidence. Further, where there is a narrow understanding of drama as performance, the result is missed opportunity to capitalise on the powerful potential of pedagogical drama.
Findings suggest that Mantle of the Expert is an effective way to exemplify drama pedagogy and to provide a clear framework for planning, with respondents able to visualise success in their future classrooms. Findings may help inform pre-service and in-service teacher professional development. Recommendations for future research are also identified.