Jenny Velarde-Ragan, MA LCAT RDT

The best experience I had in graduate school was working with Jenny Velarde-​Ragan on my thesis, a therapeutic theatre performance. Over an eight-​week period, Jenny worked with me in the dual roles of drama therapist and theatre director, helping me to make sense of my trauma history so that it could serve as the subject matter of my performance. I did not know Jenny prior to the project, and soon found that I trusted her implicitly. Jenny was able to contain parts of my story that I had been reticent to share with anyone, let alone a stranger. At the same time, Jenny explored the theatre making process with openness, supporting me in generating the dramatic material and performance aesthetic in an intuitive, yet structured way. Jenny was able to direct the piece in a way that served both the artistic and therapeutic needs, allowing me to feel safe, seen, and supported in my own artistry. Jenny’s creative imagination is boundless– in our process she entered a realm of unknown possibilities, and followed me into the world of symbols, metaphors and abstractions in order to later make meaning. Similarly her ability to support me in revealing my trauma was incredible. I felt that she was absolutely present, and gave me honest, sensitive, and deeply caring feedback. Like a wise old soul, she seemed to sometimes know more about my process than I did. Alongside these gifts, Jenny is one of the most generous and kind people I know. During the creation of the performance, she went out of her way to support me whether that was in the form of making props, helping with tech support, or processing troubling experiences as they arose. Jenny’s intelligence, intuition, creativity, strength and kindness are second to none. I recommend her wholeheartedly.