Tsinghua’s first Philosophy-Drama Festival rolls on!
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INTRODUCTION
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Themed "One 'Philos' Play: Spirits of Thought Roaming the Theater," the festival runs from November 15 to December 31 within the campus, and is comprised of six major sections: Open Classrooms, Academic Salons, Self-discovery Workshops, Public Exploration, Drama Performances, and Original Incubation. During the festival, a multitude of performances, academic discussions, and artistic experiments promise a spectacular visual and auditory feast for all TsinghuaRen. We listen, watch, create and feel.
First Philosophy-Drama Festival Organizers:
·Listen·
During Open Classrooms, Prof. Xia Ying and Associate Prof. Xiao Wei have collaborated to offer a course on “Philosophy and Drama Seminar.” As part of the Philosophy-Drama Festival, four open classes will feature theater workshops, pre-show discussions on “Metamorphosis” and “Faust,” providing students with a unique experience of exploring contemporary philosophy through the lens of theater.
On December 9th at New Tsinghua Hall’s Experimental Theater, the Academic Salon was held. Esteemed guests from the fields of philosophy and drama engaged in spontaneous discussions and themed speeches through a game-like format. This event featured live electronic music synthesis.
As part of the Philosophy-Drama Festival, Global Competence Development Center will host four public events inspired by Self-Discovery Workshops. These activities aim to engage a wider audience, utilizing various methods such as body movement, sensory exploration, and improvisation to delve into self-exploration and foster multidimensional thinking on relationships and collaboration.
The Public Exploration focuses on Tsinghua students and explores the theme of “pretending.” Life is seen as the best philosophical theater, where concepts of philosophy and drama can be realized. Three projects during the Philosophy-Drama Festival: “Pretending We’re Discussing Philosophy,” “Pretending We’re on Tsinghua Road,” and “Pretending We’re in the Museum.”
·Watch·
Eight Drama performances, with philosophical connotations and different styles are gathered in this festival. They are either "Invited Plays" or "Campus Theatre Plays". Famous domestic and foreign theater directors and outstanding actors will present world literature classics with new perspectives; new creators active in contemporary theater will create a fresh and vital experimental theater with pioneering gestures; and theater practitioners from Tsinghua Philosophy Class and Tsinghua Student Art Troupe's Drama Team will enthusiastically explore the diversified space of philosophical theater and campus theater.
Faust
The Metamorphosis
Miao (Be Water)
While the breath of life lingers
A Bitter Drama: Vladimir has to Stab Estragon 99 Times Before Dusk Ends
The Tantra (Philosophy-Drama dialogue)
Deep Blue Sea
Rhinoceros in Love
·Create·
From the classroom to the rehearsal hall, an Original Incubation of philosophical drama will be created. Students will collectively compose it under the guidance of Professor Xiao Wei, with plans for a public performance on December 31 in the Multifunctional Hall of Mong Man Wai Building. This production is set to be a special presentation at the closing ceremony of Tsinghua's first Philosophy-Drama Festival. Stay tuned! The spirits of thought have long roamed the theater…
·Feel·
As the Philosophy-Drama festival unfolds, enthusiasm is ignited. Organizers and participants alike have enriched themselves in this event, gaining new insights and new feelings.
Participants’ words:
Shi Baohua, a student from the the Department of History, participated in many of these activities. “Ms. Xiao asked us to liberate our bodies, express what’s most expected in the future, and compose poems and paintings. I watched the premiere of yesterday's play Faust. I didn't expect to see a play that could integrate philosophical thinking so deeply, and at the same time combine Chinese expressiveness and clever music design.”
Ge Yuchen, after watching The Metamorphosis, expressed his critical opinion on the combination of philosophy and drama. “In my opinion, a meaningful philosophy-drama should use the language of drama to capture a problem that is not expressed explicitly through philosophical language, to provoke the audience to think out of the box, and inspire latent philosophical thinking through drama. It might become a prophetic theater. I also look forward to seeing the theatre challenging the common sense of its audience.”
Organizer’s words:
A staff member of the festival, Li Chen exclaimed: “While striving to create and discover new forms of philosophy and drama, I realized that philosophy and art are alive and intertwined with our lives. They should not be confined to the halls of academia and theaters. Returning to the essence of being human, embracing the present life and existence, in itself, is already philosophy and art.”
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Event | Tsinghua’s first Philosophy-Drama Festival rolls on!
Writers: Hu Shuwen, Wang Xinyi, Niu Junyi
Editors: Liu Shutian, JP
Designer: Liu Zhengyu
Reviewers: Chen Ken, Lin Yuan