Training Students and Teachers in Theatre and Science: An Interdisciplinary Drama-Based Research for Science

The present study focuses on theatre/drama-based design for the implementation of educational seminars in the field of coupling theatre and science, and more specifically on the interdisciplinary and intercultural dialogue on genetic and cultural heritage, based on a true story of a genetic mutation that affects the life of a teenager and the community. The aim of the interdisciplinary educational programme is to familiarise students with the concepts of diversity, self-activity and respect for others, through experiential learning [science & language] and theatre education processes. A drama-based story about “Johnny with the tail”, implemented in Greek teams of students from 2019-2020, 2022-2023 introduces them to the true story of an Indian teenager with a tail, genetic mutations, and religious and sociological implications in East or West. Drama-based results, as experienced and perceived by teenagers, educators and drama teachers in Greece, focus on the creative production of oral and written speech through improvisation, escalating documentation and argumentation, and interdisciplinary effective learning in different areas of the curriculum (Modern Greek Language, Myths and Culture, Biology, Rituals and Religions etc.). Due to the experiential nature and targeting of the action, for the research monitoring of the design and implementation, mixed methods of self-ethnographic study with the use of participatory observation and art-based research were used.