We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Emily Bartlett a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Emily, appreciate you joining us today. Was there a defining moment in your professional career? A moment that changed the trajectory of your career?

I went to college for my undergraduate degree in theatre education. And when I finished my degree – I knew I wasn’t going to be a teacher. I loved half of it and hated the other half. I floated around doing many different jobs and ended up learning Trauma Touch Therapy as part of my massage schooling. I started working at a clinical mental health facility and knew that I was in the right place but needed more tools. My friend mentioned that with my theatre background, drama therapy might be right for me. I attended a conference the next month and – boom – I knew where I was supposed to be and where I belonged. don’t be afraid to abandon your first idea of a career – don’t be afraid to take a chance and do something totally different than what you thought you were gonna do. You can have many good ideas and good jobs in your lifetime.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers?

I am a drama therapist in Kansas City – and that means I provide drama therapy to groups and individuals. Drama therapy is the use of theatre activities, skills, and tools- for a therapeutic purpose. This is a very different modality than talk therapy – the more we learn about the body and brain connection, the more we know that memories, feelings, trauma all gets store in your body. So In order to work through problems and behaviors, we need to work with the mind and the body. In a drama therapy session, you will be on your feet using body and voice to tell your story. Drama therapy is an evidence based practice that has proven to be very successful for all sorts of client needs.

My routine varies from day to day, but a typical schedule can be running a dungeons and dragons group (role play and role theory), directing a playback theatre rehearsal (community connection and embodying emotions) and then working on a show at a community non-profit (connection, growth, mindfulness) every day is different but I am always using theatre to help people and communities.

Any advice for managing a team?

You have to create a team that cares for each other and give people space. Space to work, space to be home. Space for sabbatical. Space for brainstorming. Space for play. Space for all the other parts of their life that isn’t “work”. We are so bad at seeing the humanity in each other. People are not dollar signs. They’re humans.

Training and knowledge matter of course, but beyond that what do you think matters most in terms of succeeding in your field?

Networking. If you are not good at meeting new people (which I am not great at) find a person who is and hire them immediately. Or find a friend that believes In you and will talk you up to everybody.

Secondly, in a field where you are taking care of other people, you must take care of yourself. Mental health careers are notorious for burnout and if you want to do it for a long time – you have to take care of yourself. Be realistic about your hours at work. Set up boundaries and try your hardest to stick to them. Give yourself days to just stay at home with family or friends. Find out how you can release the stress and trauma of the day and then do them. For me – I have to move my body after a hard day of particularly hard stories. A lot of times it means loud music, loud singing and dancing very energetically. We all need to figure out how to best get the energy out of our body at the end of a hard day.

Contact Info:

• Website: Www.bhivehtheatre.com
• Instagram: B.hive_theatre