Post-Cold War Experimental Theatre of China: Staging Globalisation and Its Resistance Zheyu Wei A thesis submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy The School of Creative Arts The University of Dublin, Trinity College 2017 Declaration I declare that this thesis has not been submitted as an exercise for a degree at this or any other university and it is my own work. I agree to deposit this thesis in the University’s open access institutional repository or allow the library to do so on my behalf, subject to Irish Copyright Legislation and Trinity College Library Conditions of use and acknowledgement. ___________________ Zheyu Wei ii Summary This thesis is a study of Chinese experimental theatre from the year 1990 to the year 2014, to examine the involvement of Chinese theatre in the process of globalisation – the increasingly intensified relationship between places that are far away from one another but that are connected by the movement of flows on a global scale and the consciousness of the world as a whole. The central argument of this thesis is that Chinese post-Cold War experimental theatre has been greatly influenced by the trend of globalisation. This dissertation discusses the work of a number of representative figures in the “Little Theatre Movement” in mainland China since the 1980s, e.g. Lin Zhaohua, Meng Jinghui, Zhang Xian, etc., whose theatrical experiments have had a strong impact on the development of contemporary Chinese theatre, and inspired a younger generation of theatre practitioners. Through both close reading of literary and visual texts, and the inspection of secondary texts such as interviews and commentaries, an overview of performances mirroring the age-old Chinese culture’s struggle under the unprecedented modernising and globalising pressure in the post-Cold War period will be provided. Case studies of experimental theatre performances are classified into three thematic dimensions which respectively signify the political, economic and social/cultural tension between China and globalisation. Each of the three approaches warrants its own chapter. Chapter One focuses on political theatre, in which the oppression of ideologies and clash of civilisations are explicitly portrayed. Chapter Two covers plays that concern changes in society resulting from the economic reform since 1990. In Chapter Three, plays concerning conflicts between Chinese and Western cultures are examined to explore how Chineseness is constructed in relation to the imagination of globalisation. In this research, analysis will touch upon two levels of the interaction between Chinese theatre and the process of globalisation. The first level is a close examination of the “economic base” of Chinese experimental theatre, which since 1990 has undergone a major transformation from being government-supported to being market-supported or semi-market-supported. The second level is how the dramatists, aware of their new roles iii in the globalised theatre industry, actively engaged in rising consumerism to present their experiences and imagination on the contemporary Chinese stage. To evaluate and critique experimental theatre within the condition of globalisation, Gerard Delanty’s idea of critical cosmopolitanism concerned with “the identification of moments of self- transformation in contexts in which there is an expansion in reflexive capacities and ultimately in those situations in which something undergoes normative transformation from the encounter with the Other” will be a tool of assessment in this thesis. The self- reflexivity embedded in cosmopolitanism can build a neutral ground for ethical judgements. The analysis of Chinese experimental theatre yields a better understanding as to the development of Chinese theatre in the last twenty-five years or so. More importantly, the analysis illustrates theatre’s opportunities to bring about dialogues, reforms, and reconciliations, and to pursue the ethics of openness and equity in globalisation – the ethics of cosmopolitanism. iv Acknowledgements Foremost, I would like to express my sincerest gratitude to my supervisor, Professor Brian Singleton, for his continuous encouragement and generous help. His devotion to theatre, patience in guiding me and his immense knowledge always inspire me. This thesis would not have been possible without his insightful advice and kind support over the course of the study. I would also like to thank my examiners Dr Rossella Ferrari and Professor Eric Weitz, for generously offering me comments and suggestions about my thesis. I am greatly indebted to the many distinguished teachers in the Department of Drama, including Eric Weitz, Nicholas Johnson, Gabriella Calchi-Novati, Melissa Sihra, Christine Poulter and Matthew Causey, who enlightened me both in lectures and in private. My thanks also go to my MA supervisor Professor He Chengzhou, who has been offering advice and encouragement since I first began my journey in theatre research. I would like to thank Meng Jinghui Studio, Shanghai Dramatic Arts Centre, the Grass Stage, Zhang Xian, Mou Changfei, Penghao Theatre, TheatreRe, RMY Theatre Company, Power Station of Art, the New Youth Group and Theatre Santuoqi for generously providing primary and secondary materials for my research. I appreciate the kindness of Zhao Chuan and Nick Rongjun Yu, who received me and participated in the interviews with me. I am thankful to Professor Deng Hanbin, who introduced me to a number of theatre-makers and producers in Beijing and Shanghai and helped arranged my meetings with them. A number of people have been helpful to my study in various ways. I owe a great deal to Katia Arfara, Katherine Campbell, Chen Hui, Chen Xiaomei, Deng Hanbin, Feng Wei, Huang Yizhou, Sinead Larkin, Li Siwei, Li Zhixing, Aneta Mancewicz, José Ramón Prado Pérez, Ralf Remshardt, Katherine Sedovic, and Yue Mengzhen, for offering me comments, suggestions and inspiration. For the four years of my stay in Ireland, I feel blessed to have the company of my dear friends – whether they are here in Dublin or elsewhere, but still stay in touch – who understand my enthusiasm for theatre and do not v mind me sharing the happy and sad moments in my life with them: An Bo, Feng Wei, Guo Qian, Hong Xinyi, Li Siwei, Li Zhixing, Peng Lijing, Yang Chunhua, Yang Heran, Zeng Burong, Zhang Qin and Zhang Ruone. I would also like to extend my thanks to my colleagues Mary O’Byrne, James Little and my fellow members of Beckett Reading Group, who shared with me their insights into theatre and made my interaction with Irish culture so much more fun and meaningful. Special thanks go to Nicholas Johnson, Cláudia Tatinge Nascimento, Sarah-Jane Scaife and Neil Curran as well as the Smashing Times Theatre Company, Pan Pan Theatre Company, El Conde de Torrefiel Theatre Company and the “Love! Improv” community, for welcoming me into their workshops and shows, so that I was able to experience for myself how (intercultural) theatre and globalisation interact with one another in practice. Additionally, I gratefully acknowledge the China Scholarship Council (CSC) and Trinity College Dublin for providing me with a scholarship since 2013. I am also greatly thankful to Trinity Long Room Hub and all of the TLRH staffs for offering me a wonderful working environment for the past four years. I could not have finished my research such the material support. Last but not least, I dedicate this thesis to my parents, Wei Zhiyuan and Huang Jinling, who have been selfless and understanding, and have believed in me throughout the years. vi Notes on Translation and Names Unless otherwise noted, all translations to English are mine. Non-English terminologies and titles are translated into English in square brackets. Chinese names follow their native convention, with family name first, followed by given name. The only exception is when a person has customarily chosen to put his or her given name before his or her family name, such as Leo Ou-fan Lee and Daphne P. Lei. The pinyin system is adopted for the names of people from modern mainland China as well as historical Chinese figures, while the names of people from Taiwan follow their own Romanisation system largely defined by Wade-Giles. vii Table of Contents Summary ...................................................................................................................... iii Acknowledgements ........................................................................................................ v Notes on Translation and Names ................................................................................. vii Table of Contents ....................................................................................................... viii List of Figures ................................................................................................................ x Introduction .................................................................................................................... 1 The end of History? Or the start of a new era? ....................................................................... 7 Conceptualising globalisation .............................................................................................. 13 Interculturalism: theatre and performance in the age of globalisation ................................. 22 Understanding China and Chinese theatre today: responding to and renewing globalisation .............................................................................................................................................