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  • The Second Theatrical Collaboration between Peking University and the New Zealand Court Theatre, held at the Peking University

     


    Student performers rehearsing "A Midsummer Night's Dream" at PKU-SFL.


    Several student actors will go on to perform in Christchurch in May 2014.

       

    26/04/2014 - The Second Theatrical Collaboration between Peking University and the New Zealand Court Theatre, held at the new Peking University School of Foreign Languages performance centre.

     

    In March and April of 2014 more than sixty Peking University students from different schools, colleges, and departments will rehearse and perform Shakespeare’s "A Midsummer Night's Dream" in the new theater hall of the School of Foreign Languages, Peking University. In May, 7 of those Peking University actors will travel to Christchurch, New Zealand, to mix with professional New Zealand actors and some students from Canterbury University in Christchurch to perform "A Midsummer Night's Dream" in Christchurch.

    In June, for slightly over two weeks, ten actors and advisors from Christchurch will come to Beijing and Peking University to hold a series of workshops in Shakespeare performance with our students. The educational/artistic adventure will find our students performing with the New Zealand group in Shakespeare’s "A Midsummer Night's Dream" at the Qing Lan Theatre in Beijing for 8 performances.

    This will mark the second theatrical collaboration between PKU-SFL and The Court Theatre of New Zealand - the other being in 2012 with the very successful joint production of the new play "Man in a Suitcase". As the debut of the PKU-SFL/New Zealand collaborative theatre education efforts, Elizabeth O’Connor of Canterbury University in Christchurch came to Peking University in 2012 to teach theatre to our students for a semester, in collaboration with Joe Graves, professor of English drama and performance and artistic adviser of the Institute of Drama and Cinema attached to the School of Foreign Languages. Elizabeth will serve as the Dramaturge on the above mentioned "A Midsummer Night's Dream".

    As with the previous "Man in a Suitcase" production, the New Zealand Center of Peking University is an encourager and supporter of this cross-cultural educational/artistic collaboration on Shakespeare’s "A Midsummer Night's Dream", with the view of promoting the understanding, friendship, and collaboration between China and New Zealand. Students of the PKU-SFL programme have commented on their intense enjoyment of being involved in the initiative, some taking up acting for the first time.

    You can learn more about the work of New Zealand Court Theatre and their associates by way of their official website.

    Are you interested in becoming involved in this or a similar project related to the New Zealand Centre? Contact our liaison officers for help in establishing contact with the relevant parties (contact details for our liaison officers are here). If you are a New Zealand intern, student, or young person living in Beijing, we strongly encourage you to make contact with the Centre so that we can inform you of up-and-coming events or perfomances involving our partner institutions and beyond.


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