CREATIVE THERAPIES CENTER
Meet The Team
Pamela Dunne
Founder and Director, Drama Therapy Institute of Los Angeles
Licensure Clinical Psychologist, Board of Psychology
Ph.D. Clinical Psychology, Cambridge Graduate School, M.A. Clinical Psychology, International College, BCT Registration as Board Certified Trainer (NADTA) and RDT Registration as a Drama Therapist (NADTA), Ph. D Theatre Arts, Florida State University
M.A Child Drama, University of Washington
B.A. Film, University of California, LA
Pam Dunne is a Registered Drama Therapist and Board-Certified Trainer with the North American Drama Therapy Association. She is a Licensed Clinical Psychologist and Professor Emeritus of Theatre Arts and Dance at California State University Los Angeles. She has authored 9 books, directed multiple plays, and either directed or appeared in many educational films. Dr. Dunne has served as Keynote speaker, workshop leader, and is an International leader and trainer in the field of Drama Therapy. She is currently conducting a training program for Narradrama both at the Facilitator and Trainer level. Her work has garnered her both the 2014 Teaching Excellence Award from the NADTA and the 2016 Gertrud Schattner Award for Distinguished Contribution to Drama Therapy.
Don Francis
Tech Lead
Licensure Clinical Psychologist, Board of Psychology
Ph.D. Clinical Psychology, Cambridge Graduate School, M.A. Clinical Psychology, International College, BCT Registration as Board Certified Trainer (NADTA) and RDT Registration as a Drama Therapist (NADTA), Ph. D Theatre Arts, Florida State University
M.A Child Drama, University of Washington
B.A. Film, University of California, LA
Alexa Young
Product Manager
Licensure Clinical Psychologist, Board of Psychology
Ph.D. Clinical Psychology, Cambridge Graduate School, M.A. Clinical Psychology, International College, BCT Registration as Board Certified Trainer (NADTA) and RDT Registration as a Drama Therapist (NADTA), Ph. D Theatre Arts, Florida State University
M.A Child Drama, University of Washington
B.A. Film, University of California, LA
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Robert Rose
Product Designer
Licensure Clinical Psychologist, Board of Psychology
Ph.D. Clinical Psychology, Cambridge Graduate School, M.A. Clinical Psychology, International College, BCT Registration as Board Certified Trainer (NADTA) and RDT Registration as a Drama Therapist (NADTA), Ph. D Theatre Arts, Florida State University
M.A Child Drama, University of Washington
B.A. Film, University of California, LA
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Kevin Nye
Customer Support Lead
Licensure Clinical Psychologist, Board of Psychology
Ph.D. Clinical Psychology, Cambridge Graduate School, M.A. Clinical Psychology, International College, BCT Registration as Board Certified Trainer (NADTA) and RDT Registration as a Drama Therapist (NADTA), Ph. D Theatre Arts, Florida State University
M.A Child Drama, University of Washington
B.A. Film, University of California, LA
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Lisa Driver
HR Lead
Licensure Clinical Psychologist, Board of Psychology
Ph.D. Clinical Psychology, Cambridge Graduate School, M.A. Clinical Psychology, International College, BCT Registration as Board Certified Trainer (NADTA) and RDT Registration as a Drama Therapist (NADTA), Ph. D Theatre Arts, Florida State University
M.A Child Drama, University of Washington
B.A. Film, University of California, LA
DRAMA THERAPY FACULTY
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Pamela Dunne
PH.D., RDT/BCT, NT
Licensure Clinical Psychologist, Board of Psychology, Ph.D. Clinical Psychology, Cambridge Graduate School, M.A. Clinical Psychology, International College, BCT Registration as Board Certified Trainer (NADTA) and RDT Registration as a Drama Therapist (NADTA), Ph. D Theatre Arts, Florida State University, M.A Child Drama, University of Washington, B.A. Film, University of California, LA
Pam Dunne is a Registered Drama Therapist and Board-Certified Trainer with the North American Drama Therapy Association. She is a Licensed Clinical Psychologist and Professor Emeritus of Theatre Arts and Dance at California State University Los Angeles. She has authored 9 books, directed multiple plays, and either directed or appeared in many educational films. Dr. Dunne has served as Keynote speaker, workshop leader, and is an International leader and trainer in the field of Drama Therapy. She is currently conducting a training program for Narradrama both at the Facilitator and Trainer level. Her work has garnered her both the 2014 Teaching Excellence Award from the NADTA and the 2016 Gertrud Schattner Award for Distinguished Contribution to Drama Therapy.
Kamran Afary
PH.D, RDT, NT,
RDT Registered Drama Therapist, NADTA, PhD in Performance Studies, Northwestern University
MA in Communication Studies, Cal State LA.
Licensure Clinical Psychologist, Board of Psychology, Ph.D. Clinical Psychology, Cambridge Graduate School, M.A. Clinical Psychology, International College, BCT Registration as Board Certified Trainer (NADTA) and RDT Registration as a Drama Therapist (NADTA), Ph. D Theatre Arts, Florida State University, M.A Child Drama, University of Washington, B.A. Film, University of California, LA
Renda Dionne Madrigal
Ph.D., RDT, NT
Licensed Clinical Psychologist,
Ph.D. California School of Professional Psychology, San Diego, MA, Clinical Psychology, California School of Professional Psychology, San Diego
BA Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles, RDT, North American Drama Therapy Association
Renda Dionne Madrigal, Ph.D. RDT. NT, is a Turtle Mountain Chippewa Licensed Clinical Psychologist, Registered Drama Therapist, Narradrama Trainer, Somatic Experiencing Practitioner, and Author. She was featured on the cover of the February 2018 edition of Mindful Magazine and is featured as a 2022 Powerful Woman of Mindfulness (August edition). She has served as a mentor for the UCLA Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, Mindfulness Awareness Research Center Teacher Training Program, and Stanford Certified
Applied Compassion Educator/Consultant. She also has an MFA in Creative Writing from the Institute of American Indian Arts and is faculty at the Drama Therapy Institute of Los Angeles and California Indian Nations College, and President of Mindful Practice Inc. and works with story medicine (embodied mindfulness, narrative and drama/creative arts). Dr. Dionne Madrigal has been a Licensed Clinical Psychologist for over twenty years. She combines mindfulness, somatic (body-based) therapies, and story in much of the work she does. Her heritage informs her work. She is involved in healing theatre and has appeared in indigenous plays written by her daughters, Menil and Her Heart and Wildflower: Indigenous Spirit and Dragonfly. And consults with Indigenous communities on bringing stories alive for healing. In her spare time, she enjoys writing fiction featuring Indigenous female protagonists who save the world. Her book The Mindful Family Guidebook is available through Parallax Press and Penguin Random House and was listed as a Best Book of Mindfulness 2021 by Mindful Magazine. Look for her book Silenced, coming soon.
Rachel Brousseau
LMFT, RDT/BCT, NT
Board Certified Trainer: (NADTA)
Master of Science, Counseling Psychology degree with MFT emphasis, Mount St. Mary’s University, Los Angeles, CA.
RDT (NADTA)
Rachel Brousseau walks alongside clients of all ages to honor their process of healing and personal growth through the use of creative arts therapy. Rachel is particularly passionate about working with new mothers to help them feel more supported and connected with greater self-compassion. Rachel believes that therapy is a collaborative process to help in healing the whole person, connecting the mind, body, and spirit in order to help those who are struggling to live brighter, fuller lives with deeper meaning and connection. Past drama therapy experience includes working with adults and adolescents struggling with eating disorders as well as working with children, adolescents, adults, and families in underserved communities to assist in decreasing depression, anxiety, and attachment issues. Rachel is currently serving as a Narradrama Trainer.
Pam Paulson
MA, LMFT/RDT, NT
MA Counseling Psychology, Pacifica Graduate Institute
Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist
Registered Drama Therapist (NADTA)
Authentic Movement Certificate- Authentic Movement Institute, Berkeley
Pam Paulson currently trains Drama Therapists at the Drama Therapy Institute of Los Angeles and the Apollo School in Beijing, China. She has co-led several
workshops nationally and internationally with Dr. Pam Dunne often focused on Narradrama practices. For 28 years Pam worked for Orange County Children Family Services as a senior social worker/supervisor specializing in: childhood trauma, intimate partner violence, substance abuse and adoptions. Pam worked with community partnerships to create a Parent Mentor Program and a Strengthening Marriage Workshop for active duty and veteran families. As a co- writer and director, she created “The Job Interview”, a training about White Privilege, and co-founded of PAX (Personal Art eXchange) a community-based art group. She teaches Authentic Movement and holds a certificate from the Authentic Movement Institute in Berkeley, California. She is an advisory board member for the non-profit Project Satori which provides therapeutic services to Trafficking Survivors. She also enjoys being a resident artist of Panndora
Productions, a theater company base in Long Beach, as an actor, director, and producer. She is co-author along with Pam Dunne, and Kamran Afary for the Narradrama chapter for the third edition of the Current Approach in Drama Therapy.