Robert J Landy Ph.D.

About

Robert J. Landy, Ph.D., is a Licensed Creative Arts Therapist (LCAT), a Registered Drama Therapist (RDT) and Board Certified Trainer (BCT). A pioneer in the profession of Drama Therapy, he lectures and trains professionals internationally. As a drama therapist, Landy has more than 40 years of clinical experience, having treated children and adults with a wide range of psychiatric, cognitive and adjustment challenges. He has recently worked in prisons, developing programs to treat mentally ill offenders as well as the general population within New York State correctional facilities.

At New York University, Robert is a Professor Emeritus and Founding Director of the Drama Therapy Program.

As researcher and writer, Robert has published and produced numerous books, articles, films and plays in the fields of Theatre, Drama Therapy, Musical Theatre and related topics. He has been featured in the media in the educational CBS-TV series Drama in Education, the award-winning documentary film, Standing Tall, and his own production, Three Approaches to Drama Therapy. His 2008 book The Couch and the Stage: Integrating Words and Action in Psychotherapy examined the relationship between psychotherapy and Drama Therapy. His 2012 book (with David Montgomery), Theatre for Change: Education, Social Action, Therapy, examines the relationship between Drama Therapy and applied forms of theatre.

Robert has received numerous awards and honors including the Distinguished Teaching Medal from New York University, a Fulbright grant to lecture at the University of Lisbon, the Gertrud Schattner Award for Distinguished Contribution to the Field of Drama Therapy , and the Daniel Griffiths Award from New York University for distinguished research,. He has been cited, reviewed and interviewed in numerous publications including The New York Times, The Village Voice, and The Los Angeles Times.

Books by Robert J Landy Ph.D.

Recent Posts

The Performance of Faith

Informed by a process of drama therapy, six men create and perform scenes of their sexual abuse by priests in the Catholic Church in the film, 'Procession.'

Reflecting on Sept. 11, 2001, 20 Years Later

The brutal images of 9/11 are still terrifying to many people. Here is a way to rethink these images and consider a more balanced perspective.

COVID-19 and Black Lives Matter: Scenes from New York

In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic and Black Lives Matter, a drama therapist and photographer documents the events at they are played out in his New York City neighborhood.

Passover with Elijah During the Plague

In the shadow cast by CODID-19, a family celebrates Passover. A guest, playing the role of Elijah, brings a message of hope, easing the burden of the ancient and current plague.

A Love Story

Is a love story from the 1960s powerful enough to effect the hearts and minds of young people struggling to transform the inequitable power dynamics in the 2020s?

Why Do Shooters Shoot?

If shooting is a performance, what would happen if the audience stays at home?

The Sound of My Mother's Voice

Exemplifying the premise that social interaction promotes optimal health, three old friends meet in a café on the Upper West Side of Manhattan and share compelling stories.

Having Sex with Aliens

Many tell stories of out of body experiences and meetings with aliens. Some even tell of having sex with aliens. Are such stories real, delusional or unconscious fantasies?

The Self is Dead. Long Live the Selfie!

If the self is dead in an era of pervasive pathological narcissism, can the selfie replace it as a way to understand human complexity?

The Naked and the Nude

A lecturer shows a slide at a conference, a self-portrait as DaVinci's Vitruvian Man, with the genitals removed. He discusses the implications of revealing and concealing the self.