ABSTRACT
In this essay, Sally Bailey, Director of the Drama Therapy Program in partnership with Kansas State University and the City of Manhattan, Kansas, Parks and Recreation Department, reflects on how the Barrier-Free model specifically incorporates drama therapy in the guiding of participants with and without disabilities to new insights and behaviors as they create theatre together. Bailey dynamically articulates drama therapy as not just a clinical intervention; but to be used as a prevention and wellness modality, a psychoeducational platform, and a tool for social justice. As a drama therapist, Bailey subscribes to the humanistic psychotherapy viewpoint of starting where the clients are and creating a safe space in which everyone is respected and valued. Adolescents and adults with and without disabilities participate in the creation of original plays with a specific focus on a strength-based approach towards facilitating participants in learning how to fulfill their own needs appropriately.
