Whose Christmas? A Play directed by Sharni Page-Cameron

Sharni invites you to "Whose Christmas?" at Club Voltaire,
in North Melbourne, Thursday 8, Friday 9, Saturday 10 December 2011.

A Message from Zerka T. Moreno

In a letter to me, Zerka Moreno said, "...When I met Moreno in 1941, how could I have known that eventually he would have a Society in his name in Australia? Of course, that is what we worked hard for, to have those labors carried on around the globe...So this is a hearty Thank You from the other side, for your very own contribution to our field. Everyone of you is very much needed. Keep up the good work..."

Inspiring words for us all,
Sue Daniel

November News: Sociodrama in Greece

Ioanna Gagani, (the first trainee to become an accredited psychodramatist with the Psychodrama Institute of Melbourne) sent news recently about a workshop she conducted in her native Greece. Here is an excerpt:

"We did a great sociodrama last week in my group.
The Scene: the Greek Prime Minister, the opposition leader, the German and French prime ministers, the IMF, the media and the Greek people all met at Spinalonga (a tiny island in Crete where they used to send all the lepers) to talk about Greece. It was great and what stood out the most was that NO ONE even looked at the Greek people while they were discussing the future of the country!"

Ioanna will be in Melbourne with her husband, James and twin boys, Paris and Alexander from the 19th of December until 16 January.

Photo: Jenny Clifton and Ioanna Gagani at PIM in 2001.

Please click on the image below......

The Human Resonance with Films, Books & Stories

This is the theme for the October Theatre of Spontaneity.

John De Bono is the conductor of the next ToS. He is using an intriguing new form of psychodrama, Narrative-Drama.

Theatre of Spontaneity

Date: Sunday, 30 October 2011 from 6.30 - 8.30 p.m.

Venue: Psychodrama Institute of Melbourne, 155 Langridge St, Collingwood

Fee: $20.00 ($15.00 for MPS members)

Seeking Asylum

Is there a just solution?

The Rerum Novarum Oration 2011

Orator

Bishop Vincent Long van Nguyen OFMConv

Vincent Long van Nguyen born 3 December 1961 in Gia-Kiem Vietnam. Escaping from Vietnam in the aftermath of the Vietnam War, he arrived in Australia in December 1981 after a perilous voyage by boat.

Appointed Auxiliary Bishop of the Catholic Archdiocese of Melbourne by His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI in May 2011, Bishop Vincent is the first person of Vietnamese background to hold this position and proudly the first asylum seeker elevated to such Office.

Respondent

Hon. Malcolm Fraser, AC, CH, CGL, PC

John Malcolm Fraser born 21 May 1930 in Melbourne to a family long steeped in politics and grazing.

He was elected to Parliament in 1955, serving as Minister in a variety of portfolios including Defence, and Education and Science. He was elected as Australia’s 22nd Prime Minister in 1975, and retired in 1983.

Since leaving parliament, Mr Fraser has played an eminent role in international relations, appointed a Companion of the Order of Australia.

Tuesday 11 October 2011 • 7pm for 7.30pm start

Central Hall, 20-22 Brunswick Street, Fitzroy. Light refreshments available from 7pm

Information: Mark Clarke (03) 9926 5727

RSVP: Friday, 7 October 2011 • justice@cam.org.au

Hearts and Souls

Last night's Theatre of Spontaneity brought to light the fact that when we are talking about refugees and boat people, we are talking about hearts and souls.

As a warm up to the evening I invited the group members to create a world map, asking "where do your ancestors come from?" No one came from Australia. All had migrated here, were sponsored or came as a refugee, most had come by boat, some by plane.

We explored through sociometry and axiodrama what was special or pertinent to each country.

A little later we explored through the Living Newspaper, the question, "Do Australians realize what is being done in their name?" There followed three very poignant sociodramatic vignettes. Using many techniques including multiple role holding (multiple doubles on the stage), role tagging, concretization and scene setting we created a strata of meaning from the stereotypical to the typical, atypical and archetypal.

Thanks to sociodrama new perspectives were gained, new realizations dawned and new relationships were formed.

As one person later wrote to me in an email, ..."and the group was awesome." It's true, they were. What a night!

Today I have even more energy, feel more loving and enabled. Silence is a killer, being able to share is a great release and brings about transformation. Even worldwide.

This morning I woke up and the first thing I heard when I turned on the wireless was the voice of King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia. Yes, on Sunday, the 25th of September he granted women the right to vote and run in future municipal elections, the biggest change in a decade for women in a kingdom that practices strict separation of the sexes that includes banning women from driving. He not only announced that the cabinet had decided that women would be able to vote but that they would be able to take part in the council business. Early in the twentieth century women won the right to vote in England, and now, relatively early in the 21st Century, women in Saudi Arabia have the right to vote. Here is hope and progress indeed.

Thanks to such a great turn up we were able to donate a whopping $200.00 to the Refugee Action Collective, Victoria. They were most grateful.

Sue Daniel

For Quinn

Liliana writes, "I ran a support group today at the Gippsland RSL. Browsing through some literature on World War 1, I bumped into a poem by a man named J. Quinn; an ANZAC in battle who recorded his experiences through poetry. I was very moved, and almost brought to tears. This is my tele, my connection with him."

For Quinn

I read a poem today,

Of a Man,

Surrounded by grey.

I read a poem today,

Of a Man, a life,

With Pain.

I read a poem today,

Of an ANZAC,

With life; with pain.

And the grey that you

Have shared,

It resonates in so many

Other ways,

And with hope,

Of Shields to come,

The grey once was,

Will dawn give Love,

Light.

For you, with love.

Liliana Melone.

Leadership Weekend with Sue Daniel

Saturday & Sunday, 8 & 9 October 2011 from 10 a.m - 5.30 p.m

There are several places left in the forthcoming leadership training weekend. With spring arriving, its time to refresh, air out the cupboards and throw open the windows. Time to get some new things going or to build on things already started.

This workshop is about group work, supervised directing and dramatic enactments. The major focus is on developing and refining group leadership abilities and the establishment of vital relationships.

There is a major training focus in three areas: 1) The knowledge and practical application of role theory, 2) Addressing practical problems encountered in work or life and, 3) Enhancement of your relationship with yourself and others.

Learning will be experiential, based on the interests and concerns of the participants, who can expect significant personal and professional progress. This workshop is designed for those people already in a training process or are leaders, and also those who want to use experiential methods in their work.

Fee: $350.00 ($300.00 for PIM trainees and MPS members) (Dep.$50.00 due by 26 Sept.)

A write; A process

Compelled to write – I, tell you!

Compelled!

Into,

The writing process.

That tumultuous, exhilarating,

Momentous moment.

The urge to write IS process.

Unfolding layers – Need.

To write; express a moment.

To capture it;

In all its magnificent story.

Glory.

The urge to write is enthralling.

To give the cosmos – Words.

To reach the incomprehensible:

To change the thorn,

And calm a storm.

Liliana Melone