Playback Theatre Heals: with Studio Laban
“Does this mirror your experience?” asks Nour Wardani, actor and playback theatre conductor with Studio Laban, to conclude a healing experience. A team of actors dressed in plain black sit across an audience of women and girls, except that they are not the audience, but the storytellers, and the actors are the tools mediating the stories.
Jina Al Dar uses an unconventional social work modality, playback theatre, to unlock stories that represent the collective. During their awareness sessions, and while the children of mothers’ scurry onto a day full of activities organized by Jina Al Dar, the women and girls gather to watch a play that hits home.
They share stories about their struggles, ailments, moments of pride, moments of perseverance, and various other topics. The play is usually followed by awareness sessions aiming to prevent and reduce all forms of violence. “Going to people’s environments enables you to speak in their language rather than use tools that are foreign,” shares Nour. People are in their comfort zone in their own communities, so Jina Al Dar comes to them to offer their counseling and training services.
Utilizing playback theatre for psycho-social support has surfaced valuable information about community needs, where Studio Laban formulates assessments and reports back with insight into areas of improvement, as well as blind spots. What started off as a project driven by intuition, then transformed into more intentional programming.
Jina Al Dar is socially attuned to the stigma that surrounds domestic violence in various areas in the North governate. Taboo is very dangerous, as women care about how they represent in society. During one of their very first plays, Studio Laban accompanied Jina Al Dar’s to Kesserwan, where they performed in a big ceremony. “It was our first contact with the community. It is usually closeted and hard to reach, so we were excited to reach them.”
Once taboo is broken, the women are all vulnerable with each other; that is the true intention behind playback theatre, to build empathy and community. “We invite them to watch a play and tell us their stories.” Studio Laban’s team read the room by asking the audience not to interrupt each other’s stories, even if they have witnessed a similar narrative and relate. “We emphasize that each person has their own perspective, that people shouldn’t approve or deny each other’s stories.” This helps them speak individually rather than feel the responsibility to represent their community.
It is common that marginalized communities are forced to accept the same narrative that has been dominating mainstream media and NGO circles. That is why Studio Laban encourage specifically Palestinian and Syrian refugees, to take ownership of what they would like to tell. And within their team, before they head to perform in Akkar for example, they ask among themselves what they should expect. “We want our performance to be close to the heart; the stories we are trying to replicate, convey or echo, are at the center of the ritual.”
The stage is a very respectful and sanct space. At the end of every show, the actors give the people their story back, with gratitude. The audience leaves feeling empowered, or with a need to act, to preserve their dignity and wellbeing. Social workers guide and comfort the women and girls after the play. They provide them with resources and next steps in case they would like to report, redirecting them to relevant long-term psycho-social support, legal, and medical services provided by ABAAD’s Safe Spaces and Case Management Units.
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