Ar y Dibyn is a project that offers series of creative workshops for individuals affected by addiction. The emphasis of the project is on promoting participants’ self-esteem and creativity in a series of short and imaginative tasks. There are no wrong answers, only possibilities and a chance to see the best in each other.
Ar y Dibyn wants to give voice to the experiences of addiction through the medium of Welsh and encourage powerful and tender creative material. The ambition is to share the inspirational creative material from the project with audiences, through this enriching the understanding and empathy of wider society.
We all have experiences of addiction and the personal struggles of each individual involved in the project are respected and kept safe. There are health professionals at each session to provide advice and support if the need arises.
The project is led by Theatr Genedlaethol Cymru, in partnership with Literature Wales, Adra (Housing) and lead artist Iola Ynyr with the support of the North Wales Area Substance Misuse Planning Board. The project received the support of the Health, Arts, People Research (HARP) program in 2021 – 2022, funded by the Arts Council of Wales and Y Lab (Cardiff University and Nesta).
The project was originally ‘Sgwennu ar y Dibyn’, as part of Literature Wales’ Literature for Well-being Scheme in 2019, in partnership with Galeri Caernarfon and Theatr Genedlaethol Cymru.