Live drama performance encompasses many forms not only as an art, but also in diverse applications, such as, public speaking, counselling, psychotherapy, corporate training, professional role play, and education. In this sense it is a highly transferrable skill. This presentation will outline and discuss the speaker’s long experience as a professional practitioner and instructor in the United Kingdom, Italy and, over the past 20 years, in Hong Kong. From the first professionals of the so-called Commedia dell’Arte, whose use of masks and improvisation still inform theatre practice today, the talk will highlight how drama can be deployed to gain a more nuanced understanding of language, psychology and history, as well as to examine and engage with socio-cultural issues that continue to challenge mainstream norms and practices.

Dr. Peter Jordan is Assistant Professor of Drama and Literature at the City University of Hong Kong.