From a Small Door to a Vast World

Reflecting on my 56-year journey, ten of those years stand out as a particularly significant chapter: I devoted myself to the creation of Hong Kong’s first Master's programme in Applied Theatre and Drama Education, taking part in its birth, growth and transformation. Upon completion of the programme, I, together with my Australian partner Julie Dunn, reflected on the accomplishments, lessons and legacies of a decade of hard work. We delivered a keynote speech and later wrote an article documenting the profound reflections shared by our students and colleagues on this transnational programme (link to article – written in Chinese).

After the Master’s programme concluded, I re-assessed the evolving needs of practitioners in our industry, and launched a new Professional Diploma programme. It ran successfully for three cohorts, each yielding valuable insights and outcomes. One cohort’s graduation speech vividly captured the essence of the programme (see below).

Graduates from both programmes have since taken the power of theatre to various sectors of society, making a difference in their respective fields.

As I reflect on my journey, I recognise how my mentors’ teachings have shaped me, but it is through my own experiences that I’ve tested, refined and transformed what I learned into my unique approach and philosophy. These insights, now deeply ingrained within me, are invaluable resources that I am committed to applying purposefully. My goal is to take what I’ve learned in Hong Kong and share it globally, passing on my knowledge and experiences to future scholars and practitioners while bridging the gap between generations.

So, I founded this online school.

Perhaps this is simply my destiny, but I’ve always been creating new things in my career. This online school is yet another venture born from that spirit.

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Graduation Speech by a Student Representative

This graduation speech, crafted from the voices of many, was a testament to the spirit of collective expression in Drama Education. With humour, it presented the students’ thoughts on the programme in citation format! How delightful!

A THEATRE OF LITTLE CHANGES

Hello, everyone! Thank you to Hong Kong Art School and my fellow students for giving me the opportunity to represent the graduating class in this speech. What follows is a weaving together of reflections and learnings from different classmates throughout the year.

First and foremost, we are deeply grateful to Phoebe Chan, who guided and accompanied us through a year filled with richness. Her classes felt like being taken on a flight (Martin Kwan, 2017), always broadening our horizons. From Phoebe, we not only learned profound theories and techniques, but what I admired most was how deeply embedded the principles of Drama Education seemed in her very being. Drama Education emphasises equality, openness and diverse perspectives. In her classes and in our interactions with her, we could feel that she was authentically living these principles. Phoebe always listened to each idea with an open heart, never judgmental (Christine, 2017), guiding us toward deep reflection, making her a fellow traveler who helped us discover and understand ourselves (Andy, 2017).

Thank you, Phoebe, for continually handing us the keys to open the door to Drama Education. Although every time we open a door, another appears, we all joyfully continue this journey (Bobo & Pam, 2017). We hope we can carry these keys forward and continue exploring the world beyond.

We also want to express our thanks to the other teachers on the team, including Connie, Krissy, Muriel, Pui-Fong, and Winnie. Thank you all for thoughtfully guiding us through designing drama plans, devising theatre pieces, conducting self-initiated projects, and providing valuable feedback on our presentations and essays. Your diverse styles and expertise have greatly enriched our learning (Andy, 2017).

I also want to thank my fellow classmates, who created an open space where we could truly listen to one another, and hear the unheard voices within ourselves with courage (Christine & King, 2017). Thank you all for being each other's critical friends, bringing fresh perspectives and multi-layered dramatic creations.

Thanks to this inspiring course and the devoted teaching team, each of us experienced small changes over the year. It felt as though we had put on a new pair of glasses, and we began to see that between black and white, there are infinite colours (Christine, 2017). With a change of perspective, we saw a whole new landscape (Pam, 2017). Some classmates even described how their rigid angles slowly transformed into curves (Martin Kwan, 2017). Although the programme has ended, the experiences and learning have sparked a desire in us to see the world more broadly, deeply and profoundly (Miriam & Sasa, 2017), with an even stronger yearning to use drama to bring about even the smallest change in the world around us.

As scholar Po-Chung Chow once said, “We live in the world as part of it. As we change, the world changes.” While the outcomes of Applied Theatre are often difficult to quantify or assess immediately, I believe that whether in drama, education or society, change is most often achieved through the accumulation of small changes (King, 2017). We hope that the phrase ‘A Theatre of Little Changes’ (Michael Balfour, 2009) on our graduation keepsakes will continue to inspire and empower us to become more skilled Applied Theatre and Drama Education practitioners in various roles and settings.

Thank you, everyone.