【38th Talk】Dr. Lü Xiaoping: “Theatre and Drama”
Upcoming Event
| Introduction | The 38th session of the “Tan Lark Sye Lecture Series,” organized by the Institute of International Education and the Tan Lark Sye Institute at New Era University College is now open for registration. The lecture will be delivered by Prof. Lv Xiaoping from the School of Liberals Arts, Nanjing University. Prof. Lv will discuss the relationship between Eastern and Western drama. In China, Guan Hanqing was a great playwright of the 13th century. The well-known Tang Xianzu, whom we recognize, actually lived in the same era as Shakespeare. However, Hegel, in the early 19th century, stated: “In the East, drama only began to emerge among the Chinese and the Indians.” (Hegel: Aesthetics, Volume 3, Part 2, Commercial Press Edition, p. 298) So, was Hegel wrong? |
| Speaker | Dr. Lü Xiaoping (Professor, School of Liberals Arts, Nanjing University) Lü Xiaoping, PhD of Drama Studies, Professor at the School of Liberal Arts at Nanjing University and the artistic director of the Master of Arts Theater Troupe at Nanjing University. He has previously served as the associate dean of the School of Liberal Arts, the director of the Department of Drama and Film, and the vice president of the Jiangsu Province Dramatists Association. His major academic works include On the Essence of Chinese Opera and Questioning Serious Drama, and he has also served as the chief editor of Drama and Film Criticism and Studies in Drama. His major stage works include four plays: The Distant Song (playwright, 1993), the adapted Shakespeare play Romeo or Othello (director and adapter, 2003), An Enemy of the People (director and adapter, 2005), Experimental Drama: September 2011 (director and adapter, 2011), the comedy The Face of Chiang Kai-shek (playwright and director, 2012), the multi-performance play Noise (director of the mainland China version, 2017), the three-act play Hometown (director, 2021), and the South Korean play The Last Promise (director, 2023). |
| Moderator | Dr. Pua Shiau Chen (Associate Professor, Institute of International Education, NEUC) Pua Shiau Chen, holds a PhD in Philosophy from Zhejiang University in 2012, specializing in literature, aesthetics, and Chinese culture. She is currently an Associate Professor at the Institute of International Education, New Era University College. Dr. Pua has published over ten articles in international academic journals, including On the Study of “Qing” and “Qing” Music, The Lament Songs of the Han Dynasty and the Value of Life and Death, and The Poetic Construction and Implications of Qu Yuan’s “Wanderings”, among others. She has also presented papers at more than ten domestic and international academic conferences. Dr. Pua has extensive |
| Information | Date: 23rd January 2025 (Thursday) Time: 4:00 PM – 5:30 PM Venue: B309, NEUC Registration Form: https://bit.ly/3seNHqc Registration is free. Please complete your registration by Wednesday, 22nd January 2025. |
Lecture Postscript
On January 23, 2025, the 38th session of the "Tan Lark Sye International Lecture Series" was successfully held at New Era University College. Jointly organized by the International Education Institute and the Tan Lark Sye Institute, this lecture featured renowned Professor Dr. Lü Xiaoping from the School of Liberal Arts at Nanjing University as the speaker. The event attracted a large audience of faculty and students. The lecture focused on the relationship between Eastern and Western drama, with Professor Dr. Lü providing an insightful exploration of their similarities and differences.
Professor Dr. Lü began by referencing Hegel’s early 19th-century assertion that “in the East, only among the Chinese and Indians is there a budding form of drama.” He questioned the accuracy of this view and illustrated his argument with examples of prominent Chinese dramatists, such as Guan Hanqing from the 13th century and Tang Xianzu, a contemporary of Shakespeare. These examples highlighted the rich history and profound heritage of Eastern drama. Dr. Lü also noted that when Voltaire adapted The Orphan of Zhao in the 18th century, he regarded the work as a monumental achievement, surpassing many French works of the same period in depth and artistic merit. This, he argued, further underscores the unique charm of Eastern drama.
During the lecture, Professor Dr. Lü distinguished between the concepts of "theatre" and "drama" and delved into the essential characteristics of drama. He explained that the emergence of dramatic art in Europe was rooted in the rise of rationalism and individualism. Under the influence of these ideals, confidence in human reason provided a foundation for the development of drama, enabling it to become a powerful medium for expressing personal emotions and thoughts.
Professor Dr. Lü also highly praised Malaysian theatrical works. He lauded the work Merah directed by Seng Soo Ming and Three Children from Petaling Street directed by Ho Shih Phin, head of the Department of Drama and Visuals at New Era University College, as exemplary works of theatrical art and representative pieces of Malaysian drama. These two productions, focusing on themes of tragic realism and Chinese identity, demonstrate profound humanistic care and social reflection.
Professor Dr. Lü’s lecture was rich in content and full of unique insights, earning enthusiastic applause from the audience. The lecture not only deepened participants’ understanding of the relationship between Eastern and Western drama but also provided new perspectives and ideas for promoting cultural exchange between East and West. It is believed that the interplay and integration of Eastern and Western drama will continue to shine with even greater brilliance in the future.
