Abstract
Playwriting, performing, and viewing theatre can instigate conversations around mental health and well-being issues. Particularly in communities where this issue remains stigmatized, having students write, perform and watch fictional accounts of mental health issues helps them to access and understand the subject and develop healthy coping strategies around the issue. This study details how the American University in Cairo created a university-wide Arts and Writing project connected to the university’s Mental Health and Well-being Initiative in which the community wrote original plays that were performed and seen by students and then unpacked in a core curriculum Rhetoric and Composition class.
Presenters
Jillian CampanaAssociate Dean and Professor, Humanities and Social Sciences, Theatre, American University in Cairo, Egypt Jonathan Harvey
Faculty, Rhetoric and Composition, American University in Cairo, Egypt
Details
Presentation Type
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session
Theme
The Arts in Social, Political, and Community Life
KEYWORDS
Theatre, Rhetoric, Playwriting, Composition, Mental-health, Well-being, Community
