Flourishing from Oppression - A creative response to tackling the topic of Conversion Therapy

A Drachma Project in collaboration with Allied Rainbow Communities and Eden Cinemas and made possible through funds by Premju tal-President.

The Events Friday 1 March at 20.00 at the University Chapel: A Conversation with Dr Nicholas Briffa and Rev Karm Debattista on Gay Conversion Therapy. Saturday 9 March at 21.00 (time to be confirmed) at the Eden Cinemas: Viewing of the film 'Boy Erased'. Saturday 16 March 09.00-17.00 at the MXlokk Youth Activity Centre: Forum Theatre activity

'Images of oppression...images of empowerment' is a project for LGBTI persons using Image and Forum Theatre.

The project will focus on the relationship between sexual orientation and identity on one hand, and on religious faith and spirituality on the other hand. Through physicality, the participants will create images of oppression that reflect the personal and social tension experienced by LGBTI persons in struggling to integrate their sexuality with their faith. These images will serve as a catalyst to create acted out scenes of oppression that will be explored further in the Forum Theatre sessions. The participants will experiment with a variety of different alternatives and approaches to transform these scenes of oppression into scenes of empowerment. The engagement will allow the community to re-create the scenes in such a way that these can then be realistically transported into their everyday lives, or else provide them with interpersonal and intrapersonal skills which can be used in their lives to address the oppression. For legacy purposes the narrative of empowerment created by the participants will then be used as a basis for a theatrical script.

The outcome of this project is twofold: a) it will serve to reach out to the LGBTI community and offer Drachma LGBT more exposure which will result in supporting the marginalised even further; b) it will offer a space of empowerment to the participants that can lead to more integration in life and to better welfare.

Attendance is open to all adults over the age of eighteen (+18) and can be LGBTIQ+, parents or allies or any person interested in the theme. Persons interested in attending should send an email ondrachmalgbt@gmail.com or contact 79253875 for further details.