Stories of Young People Searching for "Answers" in Psychological Theatre Troupes | Space | Theatre Troupe

Have you ever seen your own story interpreted by others?

Participants tell their stories, actors listen, and improvise. In addition, musicians are responsible for emotional stimulation, and navigators are responsible for questioning and guiding. Starting in New York, USA in 1975, "One Person, One Story" theater is an improvisation method that emerged in the experimental theater movement in the United States.

Nowadays, there are also theater troupes in Shanghai that are practicing "one person, one story", with the longest development lasting for over 5 years. Incorporating elements of psychological drama and storytelling from the audience, "one person, one story" is actually a composite form of applied drama.

The initiator once said that the most basic principle of "one person, one story" theater is to let everyone speak for themselves.

A recent study by the Institute of Psychology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences shows that people aged 20 to 30 have the highest mental stress, and young people have become the most stressed of all ages.

Many small emotional troubles in life may not reach the level of seeking medical treatment or seeking psychological counseling, but if held in the heart and not confided in time, it can easily lead to psychological disorders. "Participating in psychotherapeutic workshops is a way to confide and release some of one's hidden frustrations," said Ding Jingyun, a psychology director and PhD. "Making one's thoughts heard and seen is what modern people need."

The Echo of the Story

Every Thursday evening at 7:30 pm, in the "empty space", the restoration theater troupe will conduct a public rehearsal of "one person, one story".

As its name suggests, this is an 86 square meter space without partitions or furnishings, which can accommodate more than ten people to lie flat and roll freely.

Around Monday, the event relay will be released simultaneously in two large groups of 500 people. Usually, within two days, 20 spots are filled up.

The empty space at night. Respondents provide pictures

Zhu Tingting is the initial member of the "One Person, One Story" theater troupe, and the "Empty Space" is her home and also the venue for the "One Person, One Story" public rehearsal. "The Empty Space" is the theoretical work of theater director Peter Brooke. Zhu Tingting said that "empty space" is the place where drama takes place, which is free and inclusive, just like restoring the "one person, one story" of a theater troupe.

"Allergy" is the topic of tonight's "one person, one story". Before the performance began, event leader Li Xiaoai invited everyone to write down their "allergens" on a piece of paper.

The topic of "allergies" has stirred up the negative emotions that have been buried in Xiaocui's heart for years. Tonight is her first time watching a performance by a restored theater troupe.

Xiaocui is a doctoral student who encountered plagiarism of her thesis ideas two years ago. The environment and atmosphere in which she works often make her feel like she is being peeped at and imitated. From then on, she activated a "self-protection mechanism" and "hid" in the dormitory to do scientific research, sealing herself off.

The "allergen" on the paper is written by Xiaocui as "learning from human sperm". This is the definition given by Xiaocui to these classmates, "They love to peep, imitate, and are also very strong executors, which makes me feel scared."

In the past two years, because there was no one to confide in, Xiaocui had never shared these troubles. Today is an opportunity for her to open up.

The allergen written by the participants. Respondents provide pictures

"Are you allergic to anything?" Li Xiaoai asked everyone a question after asking them to lie down in a comfortable position.

"Besides food and air, what other 'allergies' do you have? Are you allergic to a certain emotion, group, or topic? Is it coffee, smoke, dust, pollen, seafood, overtime, unemployment, or even a review..." Li Xiaoai slowly read out the "allergens" everyone had before entering the door.

"When 'allergies' occur, how does your body feel? Do you like this feeling?"

……

The above is a warm-up session, which is a process where the leader helps participants "open up". Some stories and emotions related to the topic will emerge at this time, and then transition to the following story sharing section. After the rustling sound of clothes and cork mats rubbing against each other, the space quieted down.

The performance of "One Person, One Story" includes one navigator, four musicians, and four actors. The navigator is responsible for questioning and guiding, the actors of the theater carefully listen, capture details, and improvise, with the musician providing music.

One person, one story conventional location map. "Does anyone want to share a story?" navigator Jia Er asked.

Xiao Cui raised her hand. "My colleague came to me with the idea of plagiarizing my paper, but she didn't admit it. Later on, I always felt like she was peeking at me in the office. Whatever I did, others were also going to do..."

"Next, please invite the actors to bring 'How could they all be like this!'" The navigator announced. The navigator chose the sentence structure that appeared three times in Xiaocui's narration as the name of Xiaocui's story.

At the beginning of the performance, actor Wu Jiabin took the lead and played the role of Xiao Cui. He frantically typed on the keyboard while nervously looking around. When he noticed someone peeking from time to time, he began to use his arms to make a blocking gesture, desperately protecting the computer screen. "Can you stop copying my ideas?" Wu Jiabin shouted angrily.

At this moment, actor Li Xiaoai played the role of a curtain and rushed to Wu Jiabin, blocking his peeping.

"He did what I had always wanted but couldn't do in real life," said Xiaocui.

Feifei was another audience member who shared the story that day. She had originally planned to attend her best friend's wedding on the weekend and be the bridesmaid, but a few days ago she suddenly learned that her best friend was Fuyang.

Feifei is conflicted about whether to attend the appointment: she has a history of epilepsy and is afraid of contracting the virus, because a fever is highly likely to trigger seizures; But at the same time, she also has a strong desire for socializing, and she has lived from a young age under the excessive protection of her parents and elders.

Feifei is uneasy about what this change will bring to herself. "If I resolutely go to the wedding, I will face insults, blame, negation from my family... and even anger," Fei Fei said.

Breaking away from attending the wedding is another reflection of Feifei's own body. "When my body or mental consciousness cannot be controlled by me, I feel that death is not far away... If I successfully protect myself this time? What kind of mentality should I face the many uncontrollable forces in this world? How should I reconcile with it, and the fear of death it brings me?" Feifei said orally.

The performance begins. Zhu Tingting made Feifei's epilepsy a part of her body.

"What is that thing? Why is it around me?" Zhu Tingting picked up a black veil.

Zhu Tingting picked up and put down the black veil, picked it up and down again, picked it up again... Her emotions changed from curiosity and eagerness to powerlessness, which was the process of performing Feifei's attempt to reconcile with epilepsy.

"Will it be put down again this time?" Li Xiaoai asked as a narrator.

"My life is completely compressed by this matter. Others are just problems that can be solved by taking a night's sleep. For me, sometimes I have to cross life and death. But because of this, many of my emotions in life have richer colors." At the end of the performance, Zhu Tingting improvised this monologue, holding a ball of colorful gauze in her arms and looking up.

"Although it may seem like a decision between meeting friends or attending a wedding, the reality is that it is indeed a matter of 'crossing life and death', and I feel that this needs to be emphasized in the performance." During the impromptu monologue, Zhu Tingting once imagined Feifei's situation.

"Feifei, this gift is for you." After the performance, the navigator would say this to the storyteller. This is the tradition of "one person, one story", where the story and emotions are repackaged into gifts and sent back to the sharer.

The formation of temperament

The Restoration Theater Troupe was established in early 2018 and is one of the earliest theater troupes in Shanghai to practice "one person, one story".

Tang Yuze, Zhu Tingting, and the founder of the theater troupe, Huang Chao, met through improvisation and participated in an improvisation workshop together in Yunnan. At that time, Huang Chao was a member of the public welfare organization "Spiritual and Beautiful". At the end of 2017, at a public welfare themed brand event, at the request of the brand owner, Huang Chao invited Zhu Tingting and Tang Yuze to organize their first "one person, one story" performance.

Afterwards, the restoration theater troupe was established. Public welfare and "service" have always been a part of restoring the temperament and consensus of the theater troupe.

When registering with the global One Person One Story network, there are three options to choose from when restoring the theater troupe, which are "artistic", "social", and "service-oriented". Huang Chao filled in "service-oriented" for the restoration troupe. And for "service recipients," Huang Chao wrote about "members themselves.".

There are 18 members of the restored theater troupe, including photographers. There are 12 people actively participating in the performance. For the past 5 years, some members have temporarily left due to various reasons such as life and work, but others will return. Huang Chao and other members had a consensus for a long time that the theater troupe's support for each other in life was enough.

"As a newcomer to the theater troupe, I lack confidence." As a highly sensitive and touching person, Li Xiaoai has always had many voices in her heart, but she doesn't know how to express them. "I will chew on my ideas repeatedly, but I can't find an outlet," said Li Xiaoai.

The theater troupe gave Li Xiaoai space to express herself. In the theater troupe, Li Xiaoai gained confidence in learning how to freely interpret the stories of the audience.

"The significance of a theater troupe is that you finally have a place to relax," said Tang Yuze.

Due to their background in improvisational comedy, both Tang Yuze and Zhu Tingting are more accustomed to using the humorous style of improvisational comedy to present the audience's story. "Even if it's a very profound story, we would choose to add a bit of 'lightness' to make people breathe without any burden," said Tang Yuze.

In Shanghai, in addition to restoring theater troupes, there are also several theater troupes practicing "one person, one story". Based on the developmental differences of their respective leaders, each theater troupe has also developed its own distinct style and understanding of the "one person, one story" format. The Mind Drama Troupe places more emphasis on the correctness of narrative. If color is used to describe the narrator's story, "It's a degree of gray, and when performed, it's a degree of gray. We don't add or reduce it," said David, a member of the Mind Theatre Company and a registered counselor at the Australian Psychological Association.

Da Lu Theater Troupe is a one person, one story theater troupe founded by theater worker Shi Yuting at the end of 2018. As Shi Yuting has worked in the theater for many years, the Dalu Theater Company is more focused on the quality of performance. The performance cycle is long, but each performance is a theatrical type.

The form of psychological drama is more flexible, and the desired effect and depth depend on the leader. In 2019, David was not satisfied with the characteristic of "just being seen" in "one person, one story", and founded the form of psychological drama "Three Chairs". The chair refers to three perspectives for viewing problems - the first participant interprets and narrates their story from the first perspective, and the second and third participants respond from the perspective of "others" or "environment". Unlike the "one person, one story" format, the "three chairs" require participants to improvise on stage. Integrating the Gestalt therapy philosophy, David positioned the "Three Chairs" as an entry-level psychological healing workshop.

The Controversy of Healing

In the first week of March, Feifei experienced a series of shocks: her grandfather passed away, she learned that her crush had established a romantic relationship with someone else, and the little leader who gave her great support suddenly decided to resign... Emotions didn't have time to digest, and during that time, Feifei frequently shared her stories in the "One Person, One Story" theater of the restoration troupe. "Every time I come, I don't have to do a background summary. They remember the story I shared before," Feifei said.

On March 24th, Feifei participated in the friend circle released on the evening of the public rehearsal of the restoration theater troupe. Respondents provide pictures

After experiencing several intimate relationship troubles in the spring of 2021, Feifei started doing weekly psychological counseling and also frequently came to the theater troupe to share her stories.

Unlike the targeted exploration of a concrete problem in psychological counseling, in "one person, one story", Feifei sees the overlooked parts of herself like a mirror in the process of being interpreted by others.

"In the story of 'allergies', when I saw the cycle of' picking up and letting go, picking up and letting go ', I noticed the positive forces in my body. When they wanted to express the pressure I was under with colorful gauze, I interpreted it as being surrounded by many beautiful people and forces around me. At that moment, I realized that this was actually a manifestation of my positive thinking." Feifei said.

"Healing" is also an experience expressed by many participants in the theater troupe. Feigou is a post-90s development programmer. Before being exposed to theatrical performances, he was a particularly homey person who worked nine to five on weekdays, traveling point-to-point between work and home, and staying at home for two weekends. In May 2021, Fat Dog first came into contact with "One Person, One Story" and the restoration troupe.

"One night when I was sitting on the subway watching my mobile phone, a boy of five or six years old suddenly leaned against me. My first reaction was' shocked ', because I was a person who was afraid of contacting children. I didn't dare to play with them or talk with them, although I liked them very much. But I found later that that day that I was not afraid, and my heart was still a little happy. I even dropped my hand, put down my mobile phone, and wanted him to lean closer to me more. About 20 seconds later, he realized that he was leaning against a stranger and instinctively retracted back, leaning against his mother." The fat dog said.

This is actually a very small segment of life, but in this minute, the fat dog has rich psychological activity. "If I share such a plot with my friends, I don't think it's necessary," said Fat Dog. "I'm worried about causing mental labor to my friends." He chose to express it in the "One Person, One Story" workshop of the restoration troupe. "Everyone in the theater troupe will listen to your story with a devout attitude," said Fat Dog.

Due to the fact that most of the members do not have the qualifications in psychology, the restoration troupe is unwilling to label themselves as "healing". "We just provided a space, made some transformations, and the audience's sharing of their real lives and experiences is the root of 'healing'. We are just service providers," said Li Gangan, a member of the restoration troupe.

David believes that the psychological drama "Three Chairs" is more deeply involved in the field of psychology than "One Person, One Story" and has healing properties.

At an event in April with the theme of "Unspoken Words," David shared his experience with his mother. He mentioned that he was not present when his mother passed away and had "unspoken words" to her. Participant Xiaoxin believes that David's sharing has awakened her long-standing regret towards her father. She was not by her father's side for more than ten minutes before his death. During the activity, Xiaoxin felt that her heart had been "opened" and hoped that her emotions towards her father could be explored more deeply. However, the sudden cessation of the activity left Xiaoxin feeling unsatisfied.

How to grasp the depth touched in psychological workshops? Who should decide on "healing"?

"In fact, sometimes when it comes to being hooked on 'psychology', many healing content can be difficult to do and the progress of the effect is relatively slow," Fei Fei said.

"When 'healing' is overly advertised, it can easily become a hunting for vulnerability," Li Gangan said, "they are afraid of attracting people whose lives are in uncertainty to consume.".

From another perspective, "when 'healing' becomes a goal, the audience for 'one person, one story' will become smaller," said Dr. Ding Jingyun from psychology, which may be why these workshops are unwilling to emphasize their own 'healing' attributes.

"The extent to which a person's psychological distress needs to be seen by a doctor, can be resolved by a psychological counselor, and can be resolved by confiding in friends and colleagues is not clear," Ding Jingyun said. Psychological health is a very subjective and personal issue, and the degree to which one chooses to solve the problem depends first on their perception of themselves. The psychological drama workshop blurs the concept of "healing", which may also be a protection for many people who need to understand themselves from shallow to deep.

application

It has been two months since the public rehearsal for the "allergy" theme ended, and Feifei has not regained her yang. Her subconscious fear of the disease seems to be slowly dissipating. She gathered with her friends in the community, held markets, and posted more photos on her social media without wearing masks.

The repurchase rate of the restored theater troupe is quite impressive. According to Tang Yuze's observation, "People may come to participate in us more frequently for a period of time, and then quickly immerse themselves in their own lives. After disappearing for a period of time, some people will come back with new stories."

At present, the form of "one person, one story" is more common in schools, and in society, "one person, one story" mainly relies on workshops. Can this form of psychological drama be more widely promoted in society?

In fact, Macau and Hong Kong were the earliest regions in China to have "one person, one story". The "one person, one story" format in Macau has long permeated the community, often appearing as a form of community stabilization and restoration after social public events.

Between 2017 and 2018, Macau experienced two major typhoon disasters. The following year, Zero Distance Cooperative from Macau launched a "One Person, One Story Community Cohesion Plan" around the plants in the community, titled "Plant Stories and Stories". "After the wind disaster, the market has generally returned to calm, but many collapsed or damaged plants are like scars, indicating that a disaster has occurred here." Dai Biyun, a member of the Macau Zero Distance Cooperative, wrote in the relevant activity record album.

The project held 7 "one person, one story" theater performances, as well as 6 community photography and text exhibitions in 8 community spaces severely affected by typhoon "Tiange". It interacted with over 500 residents and heard stories about "people and plants", "plants and community environment", "community environment and people's livelihood", and so on.

"From the perspective of plants, using plants closely connected to the community as a medium is actually a gentle way to handle serious public events and issues," said Dai Biyun. "By indirectly expressing people's observations and emotions towards plants, it triggers reflection on local culture in the community and enhances community cohesion."

Insert pages in the activity record album of "Plant Words and Stories".

How to expand the application of the "one person, one story" format more widely is currently being explored by the Shanghai "one person, one story" theater troupe.

At a recent public rehearsal, the restoration troupe integrated "improvisation art" into the "one person, one story" theater. Leader Tang Yuze invites participants to bring creative tools and improvise in any form of painting, installation, or poetry. The tools can be various brushes, flower picking, or musical instruments to enhance the atmosphere on site. Through artistic expression and self investment, participants relax both physically and mentally, and their thinking gradually opens up.

The Dalu Theater Troupe is striving to expand the concept of "one person, one story" to the outside world. Currently, we have collaborated with art museums, art spaces, and theaters. Since last year, some large enterprises have also started purchasing customized special performances and training workshops from Dalu Theatre Company.

In February 2022, the Da Lu Theater Troupe performed "My City" in a one person, one story performance at the West Coast Art Museum. Respondents provide pictures

The form of "one person, one story" has a great demand and there is also a lot of room for development. However, Ding Jingyun believes that "the more focused the topic of psychological drama is, the more effective and targeted it is." Due to the differences in individual growth paths, the psychological issues of individuals at the social level will be more dispersed, which is one of the difficulties that communities widely utilize.

Ding Jingyun suggests starting from the enterprise and trying to use this form internally. "Modern people are under a lot of pressure. If companies use their lunch break time to 'stimulate' emotions and expressions through the use of drama, it can also help build the overall team."

"Some sociologists, such as Goffman, also use the perspective of drama to understand people in society. Drama is actually a way to help people better study themselves," Ding Jingyun said.