St Mary’s Students Work with Local Community

Drama and Applied Theatre students at St Mary’s University, Twickenham have been using their theatre skills to work with local charities and community groups. Using drama and storytelling, the students have been spending time with residents of Whitefarm Lodge in Whitton, Dalemead Residential Care Home and Roy Kinnear House in Richmond. Residents of these care homes have a range of physical and mental disabilities which the students have been exploring with them through drama. The students use a particular style of reminiscence, a story told about a past event remembered by the narrator, to help residents suffering with their general memory and dementia. The workshops also form part of general activities for residents at Whitefarm Lodge, where St Mary’s Drama and Applied Theatre graduate Millie Jones works as the activity co-ordinator. In addition to helping those in care homes, students have also been working with St Elizabeth's School for its book week. It is the second year that St Mary’s students have been involved with the school, and this year they will focus on the dramatisation of science fiction novels. Programme Director for Drama and Applied Theatre Patsy Gilbert said, “In the Applied Theatre programme we look at using theatre with community groups in community settings. We are dedicated to using these skills in our local area to be able to create lasting and effective programmes with our immediate locality. We’ve been very fortunate this year to work with such great groups of people and hope to develop this work.”