The pace of life in Russia’s busy capital is hectic. A lot of people struggle with the pressure, and can fall prey to stress and other mental problems. But help is now at hand. A new drama therapy group at the Playback Theatre has been set up to help Mus

‘Playback’ theatre is a therapy and collaboration between performers and observers, where the audience helps to direct the action. They tell a story about their life, choose actors to play the various roles, than sit back and watch as their story is recreated on stage.

One of the group members, Roman Zolotovitsky, has recently moved to Moscow. He’s struggling in his new job and finding it hard to support his family. He hopes this group therapy will help him find a way to cope.

After he tells his story the actors perform the scenes from Roman’s life on stage.  

“I felt as if the actors were inside me. Although they had no idea of what’s really going on in my life they managed to capture my exact feelings. And watching my emotions from a distance has helped me to understand them,” Roman said.

The ‘Playback’ actors come from various backgrounds.  Many are social workers or therapists. Although they train together once a week, ‘Playback’ works through spontaneous improvisation.

As both actor and psychiatrist, Alexander Metilov, says that his aim is to listen and empathise with a person’s story, then to capture its essence.

Another full house at a Playback show in Moscow

«’Playback’ is a mixture of art and therapy. It won’t cure you straight away, but as a method it helps people to overcome emotions. It’s spontaneous, creative and inspiring,» Alexandr explained.

Playback grew out of the experimental American theatre of the 70s, which began to reach out to its audience.  Its aim was to get them involved in theatrical performance and to break away from reliance on a script.

Since then it has spread worldwide, offering a therapeutic platform to share emotions.

Those behind the scenes say it’s good to talk.

“Everybody has a lot of untold stories,  and with this you only need some time to speak about what you did during the day or what you dreamt during the day. It's beneficial because you realise so many things happened to me and you don't suppress it,” said Joesph Paradi from European Playback Centre.