APPROPRIATION, ACCULTURATION AND HYBRIDITY: SHAKESPEARE AND TRADITIONAL CHINESE THEATER
Join us for an enlightening evening as we delve into the world of Shakespeare and traditional Chinese theater. Professor Jiangnan Xie, renowned Chinese Director from UCD Confucius Institute and Theater Studies at Renmin University of China, will guide us through an exploration of the interaction between Shakespearean plays and traditional Chinese theater.
Speaker: Professor Jiangnan Xie, Chinese Director, UCD Confucius Institute, Theater Studies, Renmin University of China
Time: 6-7pm, Tuesday 28 November 2023
7.30pm, Complimentary Chinese Dinner
Venue: 004 Theatre, UCD Confucius Institute for Ireland
Please register (opens in a new window)here if attending in person
Hybrid event, zoom link (opens in a new window)here
This speak explores changes that have occurred in performing Shakespeare in traditional Chinese theater, and examines the interaction between Shakespearean plays and traditional Chinese theater from the perspective of intercultural theater studies by analyzing three productions as Bloody Hands in 1984, The Prince’s Revenge in 2005 and Richard III in 2012. When Shakespeare was first introduced to China, Many intellectuals devoted themselves into appropriating Shakespeare for reforming and modernizing traditional Chinese theater by mainly keeping the plots and changing the places, the sceneries and the characters into Chinese ones. From the 1980s, many influential productions focused on introducing the beauty of Chinese traditional theater to foreign friends. The cross-cultural dialogues through performing Shakespeare in traditional Chinese theater started. Shakespeare used both as a channel for Chinese to know western culture and enjoy the beauty of traditional Chinese operas; on the other hand, many western theater professionals and audiences also get to know and appreciate the visibility of Chinese traditional operas through Shakespeare. These interactions are witnessed by many performances of Shakespeare in traditional Chinese operas on European and World stages. Appropriating is changed into acculturating and mingling Shakespearean poetic language, rich contents and philosophical thinking with visibility and images in traditional Chinese operas. The process from appropriation to acculturation and hybridity indicates the cross-cultural communication in theater is not a one-way output but a two-way interaction, which benefits both Chinese and western theater and cultivates a new type of theater mingling Shakespeare with traditional Chinese operas.
Don't miss this opportunity to explore the fascinating world where Western and Chinese cultures meet on the stage. Register now if you plan to attend in person or join us via Zoom for this hybrid event.
