Mimetics As A Theatre Based Practice

If people with impairments are not expected or encouraged to progress in life they may assume that this is something that they are not capable of and internalise this oppression. On an individual level an individual’s behaviour and attitude towards their inability to progress could result in anger/frustration or passivity/ambivalence when consistently faced with supposedly unachievable goals. This is combated in our organisations by attempting to understand the abilities and needs of those who access our service and provide service users with the same social and civil rights through risk assessed opportunities to succeed and progress.

Over the year’s perceptions and attitudes towards people with disabilities have varied from community to community. Approximately 50 million Americans with disabilities today lead independent, confident, and happy lives. There have been many advancements in healthcare and thus, most disabled individuals live within their community rather than an institution. For many centuries people with disabilities have been battling harmful stereotypes, ridiculous assumptions, and fear that they do not fit in.

The making of theatre has always been a tumultuous journey filled with ups and downs but in the end bares testament to the accomplishment of the cast, the crew, the director, and every single person involved in bringing a piece of art to life on stage. In Anne Bogart’s A director Prepares erotiscm is the relationship between the audience and the actors, stereotypes are are containers for memory, and embarrassment enables growth. These 3 essays are what demonstrate the magnitude and affect of artistic expression through theatre.

In the United States, one person is born every eight seconds and one dies every eleven seconds (“U.S. and”) causing there to be a net growth of one individual every fifteen seconds (“U.S. and”). Consequently, as the population continues to exponentially grow, the number of American students in public and secondary schools has increased from “50.6 million enrolled in fall 2016” to “about 50.7 million” in fall 2017 (“Fast Facts”). On a global scale, the world population has reached almost 7.5 billion (“U.S. and”) with “[o]ver one billion people or 15% of the world’s population liv[ing] with some form of disability” (Lansdown “Children and”). Moreover, “[t]he estimated number of children with disabilities between 0 and 18 years ranges between 93 million and 150 million” (Lansdown “Children and”). Many people who attended grades K-12 in an American public school system during the 1990s can recall similar memories of their schools’ methods of educating those with physical disabilities, mental disabilities, or both. Prior to 1997, “services for individuals with disabilities were still primarily provided through a pull-out or resource-room model in which students were provided services outside of the general education classroom, either by being pulled from their general education classroom or by attending a separate, segregated class often called a resource room” (Provenzo 746). However, individuals who attend public schools in the 21st century are able to recognize that as the

We need to stop the evident barriers that have been causing these limitations, which, in turn, enables segregation amongst people who have acquired a disability. It is likely that all human beings have an impairment of one kind or another. However, many able bodied individuals have this fixed view, which is acquired from their youth through the influence of their peers. They learned from their environment that having an impairment is not the issue, but the structure within society in which they view these people is the problem. Once able-bodied people think of people with disabilities as normal and of having self-worth, then a clear monumental jump for future change within society will take place. However, a societal change does not take place with just one individual enabling it; society as a whole must initiate and stand for people with disabilities. This class in particular has opened my eyes to a different perception

Dressing them up and doing their hair was the fun part. Playing make believe was already fun in itself, but now there were mini humans! When friends would come over, we would narrate their lives and play with them. Being in control fulfilled an inner desire to “run the show.” Escaping from reality just by opening a toy box full of possibilities, the imagination ran wild by choosing the doll’s career, outfit, or voice. Each doll would have a story. What is it about stories? And, why does it seem natural to tell them? When it comes to theatre, it is an expression of a basic human need. It seems natural to for humans to mimic, imagine stories, and create meaning through a narrative. When children act out real or fictional events, one can detect that natural instinct. Here’s a fun fact: the human brain detects patterns in the visual and sound forms. Also, it recognizes patterns given from information. Stories are an example of those recognizable patterns. In order to share with others, stories aids us in making sense of the world. Theatre derives from story-telling. Theatre is appreciated because as humans it is apart of what makes us

Many people in our world are born with intellectual and physical disabilities. These people don’t have any control over how they are born, but we as a nation have the authority over how they are taken care of. From reading the fictional book “Flowers for Algernon,” the nonfiction articles “Disabled Couple Forced to Live Apart,” and “Social Sensitivity.” Many people with disabilities are not allowed jobs and/or education. The percentage of unemployment for people with disabilities is 12.1.

Removing barriers, raising disabled people’s living standards, (2015). [online] Available at: http://www.opm.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/Removing-barriers-raising-living-standards.pdf [Accessed 17 Oct. 2015].

Social factors are not the cause of disability, because society itself can not alter ones biological "difference, but society can create accommodations so that people can "participate fully or support their struggles and integrate those struggles into the cultural concept of life" (480). As the pace of society increases, so does the oppression against disabled people. If accommodations aren't made to fulfill a comfortable lifestyle within society, then it increases the limitations in which disabled people have to prosper. The education system is a pristine example of the lack of opportunities that is provided to disabled people. The education system lacks full integration when forms of teaching are not the "optimal solution for everyone" (475). When classrooms are inclusive of diverse learning styles, it is not as necessary for students to rely on support systems. Disabled people do in fact need support, but within range. The stigma that society creates for being "disabled" is viewed as individuals whom are "not working and receive charity" (469) ; because the only capacity they can bear is through receiving aid without work. When one limits the potential of an individual they are stripping them from independence, self dignity and the ability to participate as full Americans

Children’s theatre is an activity I have positive, first-hand experience in. I have participated in shows and productions in my community and school for as long as I can remember, and I loved every second of it. Since I have a history with the topic, I believed it would be a smart idea to volunteer my time with some sort of children’s theatre organization. I have always known how beneficial children’s theatre has been to me in my own life, however, I will show how everyone’s involvement in community children’s theatre bears a multitude of positive effects.

In society, students with disabilities are often faced with people that treat them like they are superior. This may stem from the idea that people with disabilities are viewed as deviant from the norm. Some forms of oppression are through benevolent gestures towards the people with disabilities, which is obviously better than hostile attitudes, but these gestures creates the idea that people with disabilities can’t be fully independent or have narratives of their own. This idea is illustrated in Jonathan Mooney’s “The Short Bus” as he shows the importance of not assuming that all students have the same story. Viewing people with disabilities as deviant is also explained in “The Myth of the Normal Curve” Dudley-Marling & Gurn. They discuss the social hierarchies that develop when people are expected to meet certain standards, but fall short of those standards. These ideologies are reflected in my experiences with the fellows.

Numerous individuals believe disability makes a person helpless and incapable of obtaining a life full of accomplishments. Catherine Kudlick has proved that this is not the case; anyone with a disability has the opportunity to achieve their life goals. Kudlick makes it clear that people without disabilities need to educate themselves on disabilities and incorporate it into every aspect of the world. To do this, it needs to be made a priority to provide accessibility in all buildings, corporations, presentations, online websites, and every event held. This will make a more welcoming environment to all kinds of people with disabilities and will encourage them to participate in educational programs and activities. Catherine Kudlick has struggled with accepting her disability throughout her life. She learned how to change her perspective and in doing so she is dedicated to change the perspective of others and the way disability is viewed, in general.

“The severity of one’s disability does not determine their level of potential. The greatest barriers that persons with disabilities have to overcome

While reading Mona’s article, it got my attention right away. One of the first issues that she brings up that caught my attention is “...it is difficult to live in the given environment and function under social standards that do not include disabled persons...” She writes about how disabled people could be “mad at the world,” but it made me realize we don’t live in a world that accommodates to disabled people. If I had to live in a world that has the opportunity to change but wouldn’t, I would be upset too. It is very interesting to think about how simple it could be to make small changes for disabled people, yet we do not. If we implicated more options for disabled people, I believe that it would society start viewing disabilities as

The formation of effective education is crucial to the long term development of our society. Education has benefits that have been used widely in the past to make a positive impact in our community. There has been economic benefits by creating workers, political benefits by creating informed voters, and even sexual health benefits by promoting safer sex. So why not educate the next generations about individuals who have special needs? A major issue today is the lack of overall social acceptance. As a community we need to be more socially understanding and accepting, and education is a way in which we can do so. “Such [social] benefits of education, include a better way of taking care of ourselves and others, and consequently creating a better society in which we live in” (Behrman, 1997). The better the population understands people with special needs and disabilities the more likely they are to accept them into everyday life. The reality is people with special needs have it harder than ever. One of the major challenges these people face day to day is acceptance in society. Schools need to educate students in order to promote the comprehension and understanding of those that are different.