Visiting Dorothy Heathcote
Please add your personal memories of times spent with Dorothy at Highburn House, West House, in Yorkshire or elsewhere.
4 Responses to “Visiting DH”
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Dorothy Heathcote - A celebration of life
The news of Dorothy’s passing has just reached me.The book: Drama as a Learning Medium changed my life in 1984 – it spoke my language and gave me courage. I used to visit Dorothy when I lived in Yorkshire and Teesside in intentional communities with adults with learning disabilities, and was a struggling NHS Speech and Language Therapist developing a more creative way of working. Dorothy has moved on a week after Michaelmas. When she first opened her door to me, it was like meeting St Michael! Her courage and clarity embraced me….Long may I remember her VOICE and GAZE. About two weeks ago thoughts of Dorothy kept visiting me intensely…I wanted to ring her and didn’t. Dorothy said to me in her kitchen in Highburn House ”If something doesn’t work Louise- go TEN steps back!”. Some of the most valuable guidance EVER – which has informed the way I work with children with ADHD. On December 11th I’ll have just finished teaching Drama to a group of Steiner school students in Germany. I don’t know if I can get back in time for Dorothy’s Memorial…I’m going to try tho’ !
when I started working as a dramatherapist in Newcastle we visited Dorothy a couple of times. these were really ‘masterclass’ audiences with Dorothy. She told one story of asking to enter a secure unit in the USA with a long pole. The wardens gave her one and when she entered to the astonished looks of the group inside, she asked, ‘who will help me fight the Trojans?’ We used that idea to great effect in a school in Newcastle. The group made ‘armour’ for weeks before enacting a fantastic rite of passage story around a ‘campfire.’ God bless you Dorothy, I came away from those meetings thinking, ‘If I can be as inspiring, motivating and passionate about drama at that age I would be so grateful. Ye Min
One of my main interests was and is the philosophy of drama snd its usefulness in education. Once, when invited to speak at a conference, I heard Dorothy, and was astonished at the enormous educational potential of drama in education. It gave me much to think about. she very kindly invited me to see her in action in a school, and I was even more impressed.She came to hear my address at a conference, and was very kind about my talk afterwards She said that, unlike many academics, I “understood”.I took this as a great compliment, since, as anyone who knew her would know very well, she was not one to mince her words or give insincere compliments. She kept in touch with me regularly, which I greatly appreciated. We have lost a truly great soul whose infuence has been hugely beneficial worldwide.
I remember sitting in on a stool (I think) in the corner of Highburn House kitchen, with the AGA, and a curled up cat on the top somewhere, whilst Dorothy simultaneously gave me a tutorial and baked pastry. I don’t remember what we were discussing, but I do remember her saying how very good Raymond was because he knew how she needed a clear kitchen to work in. Lovely lady.