Off The Rocks Theater

Across the United States, successful and innovative treatment methods are springing up. In Anchorage, Alaska, we have The Off the Rocks theater group. Our drama therapy group is using theater to promote health, foster growth, and enhance the wellness of individuals and the community at-large. Currently, our theater group is comprised of women who are battling addictions.  We hope to expand our participant groups to men and teen groups in the near future.

Off the Rocks is divided into four phases. The first phase consists of a ten-week drama therapy workshop. In phase one, participants use their creativity while exploring the roots of their addictions, relationship patterns, and identity issues. A professional playwright participates in this phase; she listens as life stories unfold. During the second phase, inspired and guided by the stories, the playwright drafts a play. While she is writing the play the women are learning about theater production and acting. They discover how to put their talent into action and to work cohesively; they form a production team. In phase three everybody comes together to transform the play into a stage production. The fourth phase begins on opening night when the participants meet the community. When the curtain goes up, the audience and the workshop participants meet. By witnessing the stage production, the community at-large joins the participants’ journey. 

~ ~Our circle comes to an end and we are ready for new beginnings…~ ~

We believe that:

Playing is powerful healing tool. When we play, we experience new ways of relating to ourselves and to others.

Giving a voice to our wounds allows us to release feelings of shame and guilt. After this release we can continue healing, replacing painful self-images with a more objective and positive understanding of who we are.

We all need to have a story that we feel proud to tell.

Healing requires integrating the physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual components of our lives.

Marginalized individuals and the communities they live in must find a respectful and safe venue to join forces. The ultimate healing process occurs when the larger community acknowledges society’s dysfunctions, and when individuals who are in recovery move past shame and embrace well-being. When members of the community acknowledge their weaknesses and fears, they create an honest and inclusive space where people who are struggling can re-claim their strength.

Drama therapy is a powerful tool, well-suited for enhancing recovery from alcohol and substance abuse, domestic violence, physical illness, and many other types of wounds. You can find information about other drama therapy projects by going to our resource pages.

For more information about Off the Rocks, or about the benefits of drama therapy, you may email Ms Lubitsh at: tlubitsh@offtherocks.org

About the Clinician

Tamar Lubitsh's extensive and acclaimed background as a theater director and drama/substance abuse therapist enabled her to develop and direct this innovative project.  Her passion and talent for using creativity and play in community-healing work is coming together in Off the Rocks Theater.

Ms Lubitsh earned an MA in Counseling Psychology, with an emphasis in drama therapy, at The California Institute of Integral Studies.  She is one of fewer than 400 registered drama therapists in the United States.

Ms Lubitsh was born and raise in Israel.

 In 2007 she won the Substance Abuse Worker of the Year Award. In 2008 she was nominated for the Alaska School of Addictions Award for Outstanding Contributions to the Field of Substance Abuse.