The work I call  Myth as Medicine, involves working with the art of human encounter, translating one’s life into a myth and bringing it to life in the form of a puppet show shown to friends and family. Through sharing our  stories through the lens of mythical  puppetry, we can begin to sense a deeper meaning in our lives. Puppets invite us to experience empathy; this opens our hearts and strengthens us as human beings. 

I have worked in this way with some of the companions at Glenora farm, a Camphill Village, with what I call the Myth as Medicine process, bringing the companions’ stories to life in the form of a puppet show. (Adola McWilliam, who has worked at Camphills for most of her life, says that the word “companion” is the word that most Camphill Villages use to describe the “villagers”; the people that have extra challenges. She says a companion is a person we work with as a full human being. Yet they suffer from more or less severe mental and physical setbacks, and need guidance from the rest of the workers and volunteers.)

How can one’s pain be safely explored and healed by writing your individual myth? Through the responses to these questions and working with the art of human encounter and biographical theory, I discovered that through myth and fairy tale we are reminded that we are supported. We learn to know that human beings are divine in their origin and potent with mysterious capacities and that the support of allies is available.  I discovered that everyone has unique and wondrous mythical stories and that we can find an openness to trust in the benevolent wisdom-filled direction of our lives. Knowing this enables us to trust and move more confidently in the outer world.

   In the first weeks the focus is on creating the Fairy Tale.  I work individually with the companion sharing fairy tale puppet shows and doing drama and movement and through this time the Fairy Tale is created.

     Once the Fairy Tale is written I work to bring together the physical components so the puppet show rehearsals can begin. I have many puppets and props in my collection and sometimes it is necessary to adjust the puppets and make new props to bring the new Fairy Tale to life. Then the rehearsals begin once a week. 

        In the final stage there are dress rehearsals with a musician. Posters are sent out to advertise the show and our companion will invite his/her friends and family to attend. All the final preparations are made

The art of puppetry offers multi-dimensional opportunities to highlight the many worlds that exist within our human life. Within a puppet play - storytelling, music, movement, and visual arts of color, sculptural form, and lighting are only some of the creative directions that I engage with to create a puppet show.

This brings us into educational, artistic, and therapeutic realms. We learn through our ability to build living pictures that hold meaningful relationships to our time, place, and community.

Adola McWilliam is a curative teacher and a social therapist who has taught in many teacher training centres and in China.  She lives at the Glenora farm on Vancouver Island and has worked alot with puppets. Adola narrates for the puppet shows we do together at the Camphill.

~Hannah 

Here is Adola’s description about Hannah Hidson’s work with companions:

Lately, for the last 8 years, Hannah has been working intensively in our community: the Glenora Farm Community. We are a Camphill community working with and sharing our life with mentally, but educable, handicapped adults. 

Hannah worked with them biographically. They learned how to share their biography and how to transform it into a fairy tale. The healing effect was incredible. They had to accept and face their handicap and how to use it as a gift for the community. They began to understand themselves and their reason for being, and how they could relate to their families, their friends and the world.  I, personally, went through this process with Hannah also. Hannah created my life as a mythical puppet show.  So I speak from experience. Hannah gave us a lot of homework on this path of self recognition. 

So these newly created fairy tales were performed for our community, invited friends, and parents . Many of the performers had never worked with puppets, including some of the challenged adults. Hannah trained them all. 

The results were amazing, and a hard work.
Hannah is a true artist, an Artist at heart and in
deed. She is also a social, loving, gentle yet strong person.
Puppets are magically healing. I also consider Hannah and myself to be true friends.

 Adola Mc. William 

Hannah Rhonda Hidson is a Puppeteer and an Applied Theatre Artist who works in service for the creative freedom of others. She is the creator and founder  of Myth as Medicine Storytelling and Puppetry workshops. For 40 years she has been dedicated to working artistically with social human development. She is a long time student of  Rudolf Steiner. She has taught myth workshops in Canada, England, Thailand, and China. She  has worked with the Canadian Mental Health Association and the Jubilee Hospital  She has also performed puppet shows and written and  produced marionette shows for the BC Government in Canada, the University of  Victoria and the Indigenous Child Welfare Research Network.