Theatre-maker Wiebke Acton and health psychologist Professor Vincent Deary present this session for those living with phobias.

Are you afraid of spiders? Do you hyperventilate at the thought of a vaccination? Do you go out of your way to avoid lifts, or freeze in the face of a button? This workshop uses creative writing to talk seriously about the impact of irrational fears and explore the physical sensations that people with phobias experience.

Simple writing exercises will offer participants new ways to understand their phobias and enable them to share their creative stories in a safe and supportive environment. No previous writing experience is required. The workshop is facilitated by theatre-maker and performer Wiebke Acton and supported by health psychologist and author Prof. Vincent Deary.

During the session, Wiebke will also give an insight into the making of her new theatre piece Phobia (performed at Waterside Arts on 10 October 2025).

This is a two-hour workshop followed by one-hour informal discussion.

About the Artist

Originally from Berlin, Wiebke has been a theatre performer for 19 years, her work spanning a wide range of theatre forms including classical, immersive, physical and children’s theatre. As a long-term member of the groundbreaking site-specific theatre company Das Letzte Kleinod, she worked with many international creative practitioners, touring Germany and Greenland.

Since 2019 Wiebke has been an associate artist at the Berlin Globe, With collaboration and interdisciplinary at the centre of her practice, Wiebke has recently moved to devising and co-producing her own work such as her autobiographical gig theatre piece As The Crow Flies which opened in Germany before touring to England. or the interactive clowns performance Hiks&Vlek which premiered in 2024.