Oberlin Drama at Grafton

Oberlin Drama at Grafton prepares residents of the Grafton Reintegration Center for a successful return to society through increased self-knowledge, social understanding, and enhanced life skills gained from studying and performing meaningful drama.

ODAG is dedicated to making significant theatre that can transform the lives of men seeking to redeem their pasts and remake their futures.

Through collaborative processes of rehearsal and performance, men enhance their humanity, expand their imaginative and expressive capacities, and develop trust and confidence. Inhabiting complex and articulate characters in a supportive ensemble fosters introspection, critical dialogue, and social values that inspire men to contribute to a more just society and to pursue more considered lives.

Through its partnership with Oberlin College students, faculty, and staff as well as other theatre professionals and community participants, ODAG hopes to inspire other arts programs in prison settings and with previously incarcerated men and women in the Northeast Ohio region.

We welcome participation by faculty, staff, students, and other theatre professionals.  Student participation is especially valued from those with theatre expertise.  Each semester, we can use no more than 9 students, and many serve as assistant directors for multiple years (so as to build continuity with the residents of the prison).  Please apply to Phyllis Gorfain, however, if you are passionately interested.