This experiential workshop utilizes a type of live-action role playing to explore obstacles to significant life goals. The action structure of Drago-Drama is a quest to reclaim the Jewel of Great Worth from the Dragon who hordes/ protects it in its lair. Seekers, on their way to the Dragon, encounter other denizens of the Dragon’s Realm, such as the Sirens of Self Doubt, the Ogres of Oblivion, the Duchess of Depression, and the Mage of Malice. This workshop, which uses archetypal psychodrama to explore life issues through the metaphor of Encountering the Dragon, has been offered in various forms around the world.
Format: This workshop moves back and forth between brief didactic explanations, experiencing various parts of the drama, and discussion of the experience. Participants have the option to move in and out of the three participant roles: Seeker, Denizen, or Witness. The Seeker is the protagonist or protagonist cluster that is on the quest. Denizens include all the characters that are encountered in the dragon’s domain. The Witness observes actively but from outside the action. There is a group-building time, a warm-up and character-building time, and then the drama begins. Participants ritually step into and out of character at the beginning and end of each segment of the drama (for breaks, lunch, etc.). Working in metaphor can often provide sufficient emotional distance for participants to work on issues which are difficult or inappropriate to articulate directly.
Participants: Participants can be any group of interested people. An already- established group of any sort (e.g., a project team, a group of managers within a business, a Board of Directors of an organization) may decide to do Drago-Drama together.
Outcomes – Participants will:
- explore their personal Dragons through graphic arts, movement, and drama;
- participate in an archetypal quest into the Dragon’s dimension; and,
- explore life issues through the safety of metaphor.
Logistics: This workshop is best offered as a full-day or two-day workshop, with 6-7 hours of workshop time per day that includes a lunch break. It is possible to provide an overview of the Drago-Drama format in a 3- to 4-hour session, understanding that participants will not have the full experience. Start and end times are negotiable. Space needs include a room that is large enough to accommodate the people involved that has movable chairs with tables off to the side. We also need a blackboard or whiteboard and appropriate chalk/ markers. For 2-day workshops, art supplies are also used.