The Art of Play: Helping Adults Reclaim Imagination and Spontaneity

About this book

Imaginative role playing is a natural process common in childhood that can be utilized by adults as recreation as well as in educational and therapeutic contexts. In this updated edition of The Art of Play Adam and Allee Blatner present a systematic method for developing skills in improvisational play. They discuss the benefits and psychodynamics of this mode of expression and offer critical examinations of the commonly held beliefs that inhibit the playful impulse. Vignettes of the authors sessions and an extensive bibliography highlight the text. The Art of Play presents a context for exploration that is free from psychological analysis or pressures to perform competitively. Scenes form the participants imaginations are enacted using psychodramatic techniques-a method that serves as a valuable tool for promoting playfulness between couples within families among friends and in a variety of group activities. As a result The Art of Play is an important resource for professionals in many fields including psychotherapy gerontology education theater arts group dynamics and recreation.