Theater & Mental Health
Exploring the Deep Connection
Story & Video by Nino DeNino
For thousands of years theater has been a part of everyday life for humans. The practice has been celebrated as a space where emotions can come alive. Its impact extends far beyond entertainment.
This intricate world has become increasingly relevant as mental health challenges are on the rise.
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"Acting lets me confront my fears and anxieties in a way nothing else does," says Bas, a young actor who credits theater with helping him navigate his struggles with anxiety. "When I’m on stage, I feel seen and heard."
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For Montclair State University students Ronen Bas and Joely DeMonte, performing allows them to explore feelings they might struggle to articulate in their personal lives.
Today, theater finds itself in the middle of it all, a safe space for people to lean on. As their semester starts to round out, these students say their mental health is struggling more and more each day.
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Heather Benton is the head of the B.F.A. acting program and associate professor in acting & movement within the department of theatre and dance at Montclair State, and is an expert on the topic.
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“Certainly there is a relationship,” Benton said. “I will say that the craft of acting demands that you are stepping into the work from a healthy place. There's definitely a connection”.
Watching a play can be a transformative experience for audiences, allowing them to see their struggles reflected in characters on live stage.
DeMonte, a theater enthusiast and audience member, describes how attending performances has been a lifeline during tough times.
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"To me, theater is everything,” DeMonte said. “It's where I turn to when I'm sad, when I'm happy, when I'm anything in between. It's just my go-to. It's what I love."
MONTCLAIR, NJ 10/27/2024. Joely DeMonte shared with me her Broadway Binder. This is a safe space where DeMonte keeps all of the Playbills she has ever received.
MONTCLAIR, NJ 08/14/2023. Ronen Bas (Right) using a theater club on
campus as a safe space and enjoying it with his friends. Photo courtosey
of Andrew Cooper.
Another key factor is linking theater and mental health, given its ability to foster a sense of community.In both professional and community theater settings, the sense of belonging among actors is said to significantly boost mental well-being.
Bas spoke on the importance of theater as a social outlet, particularly for those in college who may be struggling with their mental health.
“I think we have a hard time dealing with our emotions, and we're not really sure how to go about certain things,” Bas said. “I think we're scared of talking to each other, which is not great.”
He highlights how MSU Players, a theater group on campus, became a second family during a difficult period in his life.
"Especially at Montclair, we live in such a diverse campus here that I feel very, very comfortable and safe there,” Bas said. “You meet a lot of new people and the audition processes are very friendly.”
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For Bas, theater provided not only an emotional release but also a supportive community where he could meet new people and engage with others in a safe and affirming environment. For DeMonte, attending performances has been a way to connect with others who share her love for storytelling.
"There’s a unique energy in the theater," DeMonte said. "[From] the audience's standpoint, it's being able to immerse yourself into someone else's world same thing, being able to process things [and] having another outlet to process those emotions."
It was not until later in life that DeMonte truly understood the profound impact theater could have on mental health.
Reflecting on her own personal struggles, including a challenging academic journey and a period where she considered ending her life, she recalled how a song from the musical In the Heights helped her turn a corner.
“I was sitting, writing a letter, I was listening to my Broadway playlist and a song from In the Heights came on,” DeMonte said It’s called 'Breathe' and it just really resonated with me at that time.”
The song, which speaks about overcoming personal struggles and breathing through difficult moments, served as a reminder for DeMonte, she tells herself that “everything is going to be okay.”
This moment was transformative in her path toward mental wellness, underscoring theater's power to provide emotional healing and a sense of connection.
DeMonte’s experience is a testament to how theater can offer a space for individuals to process their own emotions and struggles.
“Being part of theater, from both the audience standpoint and the performer standpoint it’s working on a show for so long, building that community with people, and just maybe being able to process a story like emotions that you yourself have yet to process.”
MONTCLAIR, NJ 10/27/2024. Joely DeMonte opens and welcomes the viewing of all of her Playbills. DeMonte looks through these to reminesce and enjoy old memories.
MONTCLAIR, NJ 10/13/2023. Ronen Bas preforming a sketch in his MSU Players rehearsal for improv show, M.I.L.F. Photo courtesy of Andrew Cooper.
MONTCLAIR, NJ 10/27/2024. Joely DeMonte smiling as she listens to her Broadway playlist. DeMonte says she listens to this playlist most of her day, and especially when she's feeling sad or on long drives.
MONTCLAIR, NJ 10/27/2024. A snippet of the love Joely DeMonte has for Broadway. DeMonte says she bought this piece while in the city for a show.
Theater becomes more than just entertainment; it becomes a mirror for performers and viewers alike to confront, understand and release their own internal battles.
Benton explained that acting training, in particular, encourages self-discovery, which can be a profoundly transformative process.
"The whole premise of acting is that you're expanding your ability to be human in every possible direction in the most authentic way possible," Benton said.
She says that this process of expanding one's emotional and psychological range—of playing characters far removed from one's everyday persona—can help actors access parts of themselves that they may have previously ignored or suppressed.
Benton also underscored the importance of a healthy balance between emotional exploration and mental well-being, explaining that it can sometimes bring up difficult emotions that require careful management.
“Acting training is not therapy,” Benton said. “Sometimes, when you lean into [emotions], you learn ‘that's not playable for me right now’ that's when it's like, ‘you know what? This is a really good time for you to go to, like the Zen Den, right?’ Which is what we have in the department of theater and dance [as well as] finding psychological services.”
As more institutions recognize the role of the arts in mental well-being, it is clear that theater’s power to heal should not be underestimated.
For many students, like Joely and Ronen, theater is not just a passion, it is a lifeline.
MONTCLAIR, NJ 10/27/2024. Joely DeMonte sharing the Playbills from when she was in high school. DeMonte says she was in the ensemble for many shows throughout middle school and high school.
MONTCLAIR, NJ 10/10/2024. Joely DeMonte scrolling through Broadway news on her break at work. DeMonte says she surrounds herself in all of the newest when it comes to Broadway.
MONTCLAIR, NJ 10/27/2024. Playbills of shows Joely DeMonte
has seen this past semester at the Paper Mill Playhouse and
surrounding schools.
