Applied drama in the intersection of education and healing

The article aims at exploring how learning in the classroom becomes more engaging and a dynamic transformative experience for the learners when it becomes embodied through drama tools and conventions. It presents case studies of the work of Rangbhumi Applied Theatre, exploring the intersection of education and therapy; and investigates how Applied Drama tools such as drama conventions, Playback Theatre, and Theatre of the Oppressed, used in diverse settings and contexts, can temporarily suspend the conventional teacher-student hierarchy, create an action-reflection interplay, build trust, and invite deeper dialogues on inner conflicts, moving participants from their existing ‘oppressive’ space to a more enabling one. The research methods were: an initial survey interviews with participants; the reflections of the participants at the end of each session; the dialogues that emerged during the sessions; and the impact of the work, which was assessed through final presentations at the end of the programme. The performative pedagogy that evolved through the praxis model further provided a research base to understand the concerns and needs of the group. This article will critically examine the suitability of applied drama – specifically the use of Forum Theatre and drama conventions – in the Indian classroom, and in the varied communities where we applied these forms. In conclusion, the article shares the impact of drama tools and conventions as a 3E’s model – engagement, experience and exploration.