DON NELSON
DAILY NEWS

Berkeley Gazette

Sacramento Bee

—Carol Lucha Burns
Associate Professor, Theatre
University of New Hampshire

—Angela Tonies
Stanford Women’s Center
Office of Student Activities

DEAH SCHWARTZ has more than 20 years experience using therapeutic arts, music, drama and recreation activities in a variety of clinical and educational settings with clients ranging in age from 5 to 80+. She has a Doctorate in Education, a BA in Theater, an MS in Therapeutic Recreation, and an MA in Creative Arts Education.  Dr. Schwartz studied Art Therapy at the College of Notre Dame for two years and is a contributing blogger for the Art Therapy website.  A Nationally Certified Recreation Therapist, Deah was a professor at San Francisco State University for 10 years, preparing students for careers in Recreation Therapy. Having studied theater at the Neighborhood Playhouse in New York City and as a member of Actors’ Equity, Deah has a unique combination of experience as a performer, teacher and clinician. This background, coupled with her fervent belief in size acceptance, has led to her co-authoring the “LEFTOVERS Workbook/DVD set.” In addition to being a co-author and original cast member of “LEFTOVERS: THE UPS AND DOWNS OF A COMPULSIVE EATER,” Deah is one of the co-founders of Education Through Therapeutic Arts (ETTA) and the author of the syndicated blog, Tasty Morsels, that she hopes will provide assistance in defining one’s own standard of beauty and finding ways to make peace with one’s body.

ANNE WILFORD has been a performing artist, writer and teacher for more than 35 years. She was an artist-in-residence with the “United Stage” under the auspices of Grand Valley State University in Michigan for 6 years, where she performed, taught and toured nationwide. She was an artist-in-residence with the Mime Workshop in Rochester, NY, where she performed and created drama programs in the schools. She has performed her solo show, “Annie… a different kind of clown” for more than 20 years throughout California and Michigan in a variety of milieus. She was one of two improvisational characters in the film “Daughter Rite” by Michelle Citron, which won the Golden Athena Award in 1982 for Best Experimental Film. Although Anne has worked in many theater companies, it was her exploration in developing “LEFTOVERS” and years of personal work that opened her to the healing power of the artistic process, and laid the ground for her next step as a psychotherapist. She has been practicing depth therapy with individuals, couples and groups for more than 15 years. Anne holds a B.Ph. in Experimental Theater, an MA in Psychology, and is a licensed Marriage and Family Therapist. She has been a Seminar Instructor with Gerry Grossman Seminars teaching therapists for more than 15 years. Anne was one of the original writers and performers for the “LEFTOVERS: The Ups and Downs of a Compulsive Eater” theater performance, and is also one of the co-founders of ETTA, and co-author of the LEFTOVERS Workbook/DVD set.

MARCIA KIMMELL is an actor, director and teacher specializing in improvisational-based acting. She studied with Viola Spolin, the originator of Theater Games, at the Second City in Chicago and the Spolin Theater Game Center in Los Angeles. Marcia founded her own theater and school, The Next Stage, in 1979. She has used theater as a therapeutic medium with emotionally disturbed children and adults, and was adjunct faculty in the Drama Therapy Masters’ Degree Program at Antioch University. Marcia also taught improvisation in the American Conservatory Theatre’s Advanced Actor Training Masters’ Program and School of the Arts High School in San Francisco. Marcia has taught,”Acting with an Improvisational Base” for film directors, game designers and animators in several Bay Area film schools. Marcia’s involvement with “LEFTOVERS” has been an ongoing healing experience. It incorporates her interests in theater, video and film as tools for education, mental health and personal growth. Marcia was one of the original writers and performers for the “LEFTOVERS: The Ups and Downs of a Compulsive Eater” theater piece.

About ETTA

Founded by Deah Schwartz and Anne Wilford, Education Through Therapeutic Arts (ETTA) focuses on the utilization of expressive arts in the therapeutic process. We work with a wide range of populations and in a variety of milieus. ETTA provides workshops and seminars in many areas and is a CEU provider (CEU # PCE 3225)

ETTA provides customized workshops and seminars, including:

• personal growth seminars and workshops
• special interest group sessions using expressive arts to explore individual therapeutic issues (dealing with loss and grieving, aging and menopause, health issues, etc)
• trainings for teachers, facilitators and therapists in the integration of expressive arts in curriculum
• custom-designed sessions for universities, hospitals, therapeutic agencies and schools.
• single sessions, weekend workshops or extended series, flexible formats custom designed to fit the needs of the group

Some areas of focus include:

• Eating disorder awareness
• Eating disorder prevention
• Body image
• Size acceptance
• Media influence
• Peer pressure
• Self-esteem

For more information call 510-287-9828, or email [email protected].

Some workshops may include the screening of “LEFTOVERS: The Ups and Downs of a Compulsive Eater.” This award-winning original theatre piece about women and weight in America was written by Marcia Kimmell, Deah Schwartz and Anne Wilford, and is a heartfelt, honest and very funny exploration of women’s body issues. We have found that the sharing of this video is an excellent way to open up a very complicated subject.