Drama Therapist in Johannesburg
I am Gillian Brollo, an HPCSA-registered drama therapist offering individual, couples and group therapy in Johannesburg.
What is Drama Therapy?
Drama therapy uses the principles of drama—story, role and imagination—to explore what is happening in your life and find fresh ways of seeing the experiences, relationships and patterns that are causing distress.
There’s no need to perform.
Drama therapy is simply another way of doing therapy. It offers alternatives to what we usually call “talk therapy”, particularly when talking about something over and over isn’t getting you where you want to go.
A session may include conversation, storytelling, images, objects, writing, art-making, role exploration or imaginative exercises. What we use depends on who you are, what brings you to therapy and what feels comfortable.
You remain in control of how you participate.
Sometimes seeing something differently is enough to start changing it.
Drama Therapist in Johannesburg
I am Gillian Brollo, an HPCSA-registered drama therapist offering individual, couples and group therapy in Johannesburg.
What is Drama Therapy?
Drama therapy uses the principles of drama—story, role and imagination—to explore what is happening in your life and find fresh ways of seeing the experiences, relationships and patterns that are causing distress.
There’s no need to perform.
Drama therapy is simply another way of doing therapy. It offers alternatives to what we usually call “talk therapy”, particularly when talking about something over and over isn’t getting you where you want to go.
A session may include conversation, storytelling, images, objects, writing, art-making, role exploration or imaginative exercises. What we use depends on who you are, what brings you to therapy and what feels comfortable.
You remain in control of how you participate.
Sometimes seeing something differently is enough to start changing it.
Drama Therapist Services in Johannesburg
Individual therapy in Johannesburg
Individual therapy offers private space to explore what is happening without needing to protect, reassure or manage anyone else.
We can look at present difficulties, recurring patterns and the experiences that may be shaping how you respond. The aim is not to erase every uncomfortable feeling. It is to increase your capacity to understand what you feel, tolerate difficult emotions and make choices that are less controlled by old patterns.
As a drama therapist in Johannesburg, I offer face-to-face individual therapy in Emmarentia, Johannesburg.
A 50-minute individual session costs R500. Package options are available when booking eight or more sessions.
Online therapy across South Africa
You can also work with me as an online drama therapist from anywhere in South Africa.
Online therapy can be useful if you live outside Johannesburg, travel frequently, have limited time or simply feel more comfortable working from your own space.
The work remains relational and personal. Creative exercises can be adapted for online sessions, often using ordinary objects, images, writing or imagination.
You will need a private space, a reliable internet connection and a device that allows us to see and hear one another clearly.
Online individual sessions are 50 minutes and cost R500.
Couples and family therapy
Relationship difficulties rarely belong neatly to one person.
Couples and families can become trapped in familiar roles: the one who pursues, the one who withdraws, the peacemaker, the responsible one, the difficult one or the person who is expected to hold everything together.
Therapy creates space to slow these interactions down and understand what is happening beneath them.
We look at how each person experiences the relationship, how conflict develops and what keeps the same patterns going. The purpose is not to decide who is right. It is to make the pattern visible enough for different choices to become possible.
Group drama therapy
Groups allow people to learn not only through their own experiences, but also through witnessing, responding to and reflecting with others.
I offer tailor-made drama therapy groups for schools, rehabilitation centres, inpatient facilities, student residences and community organisations.
Sessions can be designed around subjects such as:
- Emotional awareness
- Conflict and communication
- Grief and change
- Identity and belonging
- Relationships and boundaries
- Addiction and recovery
- Stress and coping
- Group dynamics
Group sessions may be 60 or 90 minutes. Rates are available on request.
Who I work with
I work with:
- Children struggling with conflict—including children who have experienced trauma, loss or the effects of growing up in difficult circumstances.
- Teenagers figuring out who they are—and, equally importantly, who they definitely aren’t.
- Adults carrying stress, grief or the weight of old stories.
- Couples caught in the same fight on repeat.
- Families who want to untangle the knots together.
- People moving through separation, divorce, retirement, pregnancy loss or another major life transition.
- People living with shame, addiction or patterns that feel difficult to interrupt.
- People who don’t quite fit into any of those categories but know that something needs to change.
Therapy that offers more than talking
Life doesn’t always unfold the way we expected.
You may be grieving, overwhelmed, stuck in the same relationship patterns or trying to make sense of an experience that continues to affect you. Perhaps something has changed and you no longer feel quite sure where you fit. Or perhaps nothing obvious has happened, but you know that you are not feeling like yourself.
You do not need to have the right words for any of this.
I am Gillian Brollo, an HPCSA-registered Drama Therapist offering individual, couples and group therapy in Johannesburg, as well as online therapy across South Africa.
My approach is thoughtful, creative and grounded in the understanding that people are more complicated than a list of symptoms. Therapy can be serious without being cold. It can make room for difficult experiences, uncertainty, humour and the parts of you that have not yet found a way to speak.
What is therapy with me like?
Therapy begins with getting to know one another.
We look at what has brought you here, what is happening in your life now and what you would like to understand or change. We may also pay attention to earlier experiences and relationships that have shaped how you see yourself, other people and the world around you.
There is no standard script.
Some sessions may involve a great deal of talking. In others, we may use a story, object, image or role to explore something from a different angle. We work at a pace that allows us to go beneath the surface without pushing you beyond what feels manageable.
My role is not to hand you a set of instructions for your life. It is to help you think, notice, experiment and make choices with greater awareness.
Child Participation Interviews
- Child participation interviews
- Feedback sessions (where appropriate)
- A written report
- Recommendations that support the child’s best interests
For attorneys, I am a qualified Family Law Mediator and can prepare documents aligned to rule 41(a) requirements.
Child Participation Interviews
- Child participation interviews
- Feedback sessions (where appropriate)
- A written report
- Recommendations that support the child’s best interests
For attorneys, I am a qualified Family Law Mediator and can prepare documents aligned to rule 41(a) requirements.
What can we work on?
People come to therapy for all sorts of reasons.
Sometimes there is a clear problem. Sometimes there is just a vague sense that life has become too much, too small or strangely disconnected.
Some of the themes that show up in my therapy room include:
- Anxiety, stress and overwhelm
- Grief and loss
- Trauma and difficult experiences
- Pregnancy loss
- Separation and divorce
- Relationship and family conflict
- Addiction and recovery
- Shame and self-criticism
- Identity and self-esteem
- Difficulties at home, school or work
- Aging, retirement and changing family roles
- Feeling stuck or unable to move forward
- Feeling that you have lost your sense of yourself
- Uncertainty about your relationships, role or direction in life
You do not need a diagnosis or a dramatic crisis to begin therapy. Wanting to understand yourself more clearly is reason enough.
Drama Therapy Blog Articles
Hearing Children During Family Conflict: Helping Children Find Their Voice
Children and divorce can bring many difficult decisions for families. Where will the children live? How will they spend time with each parent? How will school, holidays and everyday routines work? How will parents communicate with one another? But underneath all of...
Drama Therapy Blog Articles
Hearing Children During Family Conflict: Helping Children Find Their Voice
Children and divorce can bring many difficult decisions for families. Where will the children live? How will they spend time with each parent? How will school, holidays and everyday routines work? How will parents communicate with one another? But underneath all of...
Frequently Asked Questions
I hate drama. Is drama therapy really for me?
That’s OK.
You will not be expected to perform, recite a monologue or in any way be “acting”.
Drama therapy isn’t drama class. And you don’t need to be creative, theatrical or particularly comfortable in the spotlight.
Will I have to act?
No.
You may be invited to explore a role, story, image or object, but you can always choose how you participate. Many sessions involve ordinary conversation with creative methods introduced only when they may be useful.
There is no audience. There are no marks. There is no audition.
Is drama therapy only for artsy people?
No. Drama therapy is for anyone who wants to try an alternative to conventional talk therapy.
What does drama therapy look like?
There is talk. We establish a few things. Then we explore stuckness, difficulties and fears holding you back. Then we find possibilities to reclaim joy and live a richer, fuller life. Tools and techniques are story, objects, art making, play.
What happens in the first therapy session?
The first session is a chance for us to meet, talk about what brings you to therapy and get a sense of what you may need.
You don’t have to arrive with a polished explanation. We can begin with what you know, including “I’m not sure why I’m here, but something isn’t right.”
We will also discuss confidentiality, practical arrangements and any questions you have about the process.
How many sessions will I need?
There is no single answer.
Some people come to work on a particular difficulty over a shorter period. Others find longer-term therapy useful for exploring complex experiences or recurring relationship patterns.
We can discuss what you hope to gain from therapy and review the work as we go.
Can I do therapy online?
Yes.
I offer online therapy across South Africa, as well as face-to-face therapy in Johannesburg.
What if I don’t like it?
No hard feelings.
Therapy is a relationship, and finding the right person to work with matters.
Frequently Asked Questions
I hate drama. Is drama therapy really for me?
That’s OK.
You will not be expected to perform, recite a monologue or in any way be “acting”.
Drama therapy isn’t drama class. And you don’t need to be creative, theatrical or particularly comfortable in the spotlight.
Will I have to act?
No.
You may be invited to explore a role, story, image or object, but you can always choose how you participate. Many sessions involve ordinary conversation with creative methods introduced only when they may be useful.
There is no audience. There are no marks. There is no audition.
Is drama therapy only for artsy people?
No. Drama therapy is for anyone who wants to try an alternative to conventional talk therapy.
What does drama therapy look like?
There is talk. We establish a few things. Then we explore stuckness, difficulties and fears holding you back. Then we find possibilities to reclaim joy and live a richer, fuller life. Tools and techniques are story, objects, art making, play.
What happens in the first therapy session?
The first session is a chance for us to meet, talk about what brings you to therapy and get a sense of what you may need.
You don’t have to arrive with a polished explanation. We can begin with what you know, including “I’m not sure why I’m here, but something isn’t right.”
We will also discuss confidentiality, practical arrangements and any questions you have about the process.
How many sessions will I need?
There is no single answer.
Some people come to work on a particular difficulty over a shorter period. Others find longer-term therapy useful for exploring complex experiences or recurring relationship patterns.
We can discuss what you hope to gain from therapy and review the work as we go.
Can I do therapy online?
Yes.
I offer online therapy across South Africa, as well as face-to-face therapy in Johannesburg.
What if I don’t like it?
No hard feelings.
Therapy is a relationship, and finding the right person to work with matters.
Ready to try something different?
You don’t have to have everything figured out before you contact me.
If you’re struggling with life, relationships, anxiety, grief, change or simply feeling stuck, we can start with a conversation and see where it goes.
WhatsApp: 076 600 2592
E-mail: gillian@boldtherapy.co.za
Johannesburg | Online therapy across South Africa