'Persephone Sextou comprehensively frames Theatre for Children in Hospital (TCH) as a bedside and interactive theatre approach concerned with reframing illness and the identity of children in hospital, and argues that TCH offers children the possibility to have a positive experience in an environment that can otherwise be daunting. The author shares her expertise as a practitioner and a researcher working with TCH in NHS hospitals in the UK, thereby crafting an in-depth analysis both from within the process (as a theatre-maker) and from the margins of the process (as a scholar outside the medical field). The book is written from an artistic and philosophical perspective, placing compassion at the heart of TCH artists’ work with children. This also means that readers in healthcare may find themselves frustrated with the idea of having to negotiate who is more altruistic, the artist or the healthcare professional; and which is more compassionate, the “hard data” or the qualitative research?' 

Foreword

Prologue

Introduction

Motivation and beliefs

Arts and health

The structure of the book

Chapter One: A TCH definition and more…

Applied theatre in hospitals

Theatre as an ‘antidote’ to clinical stress

A playful ‘marriage’ of two cultures, the artistic with the clinical in audience participation

The artist–child synergistic relationship

Ethical concerns

TCH and therapy

Chapter Two: The distinctive features of TCH practice and research

Background information of the study

Understanding the clinical context

The study: Methodology

Findings and discussion: TCH practice comes alive!

Chapter Three: TCH as a choice: ‘I want to make a difference!’

A philosophical approach to TCH

Aristotle

Heraclitus

My philosophy

Chapter Four: Concluding thoughts

Summary

The future of TCH

Appendices

Appendix One: Breathing with Love, the script

Appendix Two: The shape of our bedside theatre rehearsals 

Appendix Three: Writing a TCH proposal plan (bid)

Appendix Four: Example of application letter

Appendix Five: Guidance for applying for NHS Research Ethics Committee approval (for researchers only)

Note on the author

Bibliography

Index