Bio:
Zhixuan (Mia) Zhu (she/they) is a PhD student in Theatre and Performance at the Graduate Center, CUNY. Before coming to the GC, she completed her BA degree in translation and interpreting at Beijing Foreign Studies University, China, and her MA degree in theatre studies at the University of British Columbia, Canada. Ever since her MA years, she has been a migratory bird, a frequent flyer across the Pacific Ocean.
Mia’s research interests include theatre and subculture, theatre and performance translation, puppetry and performing objects, performance and digital media, and site-specific and participatory performance. Ultimately, she is interested in the fundamental questions of why we need theatre and performance as part of our contemporary life and how theatre and performance emerge in parts of the world where they seem impossible. Her paper on the stage-worthiness of modern Chinese woman playwright Bai Wei, adapted from her MA thesis and titled “Modernist Visions Beyond the Horizon of History: The Theatricality of Bai Wei’s Rarely Staged Plays,” was published in Asian Theatre Journal. Her paper “The Dissenting Paper in Zero-COVID China” explores the role of performing objects (in this case, paper) in political protests and can be found in Puppetry International Research.
Outside the academy, she is a practicing dramaturg, professional editor, freelance translator, part-time illustrator, amateur photographer, and full-time dog parent. If she does not reply to your message right away, she is walking her dog!
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