Children's Therapeutic Puppet Theatre-Action, Interaction, and Cocreation
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This article is an account of therapeutic puppet groups with hospitalized children who have psychiatric problems related to trauma. Based on the anthropological notion that metaphors created by groups during spontaneous collaborative play are actually stories the players "tell" about themselves and their interactions with each other, Children's Therapeutic Theatre exemplifies the process theory principle that cocreative becoming results through the differentiation and interaction of coexisting opposites. In its methods, it integrates mutual story telling with adult imaginative play and psychodrama action methods (J. L. Moreno & Z. T. Moreno, 1975). What is unique is that adult facilitators engage in fantasy puppet play with groups of children. The approach provides a method for assessing coexisting opposite characteristics, feelings, and behaviors associated with trauma and abuse while at the same time
broadening· the range of expression of feelings and presenting options for new behavior. Strategies are illustrated through description and analysis of 7 consecutive puppet sessions.
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