Study Guide: Chimerica
BY: Lucy Kirkwood
DIRECTED BY: Chris Abraham
A Canadian Stage
and Royal Manitoba Theatre Centre production
Mar 29-Apr 17, 2016
Overview and Classroom Activities
Study Guide: Chimerica
A letter to teachers and students:
Education is a vital part of what we do at Canadian Stage. We are committed to sharing material with
our audiences that will challenge, enrich and deepen their perspectives. Sharing art diversifies our
conversations and Lucy Kirkwood’s Chimerica exemplifies this. This play is a fictional work rooted in reallife events (as well as extensive research) that prompts serious questions around the role of art and
media by negotiating how events are reported and remembered by diverse cultures and communities.
Kirkwood’s script transitions fluidly between time and place. The play begins in Tiananmen Square in
June 1989 where students protested democracy en masse. Joe, a fictional photojournalist from America,
captures the iconic “Tank Man” image: a photograph of a single (presumed) protester, standing still in
front of a tank, holding plastic bags in each hand. This moment of defiance came to symbolize the
political tension of that time in China. Shifting to more than twenty years later in New York, a mysterious
note appears in a Beijing newspaper that suggests the anonymous hero depicted is now living in
America. Joe sets out to find the image’s subject and establish what happened to him following that
depicted moment. In the meantime, Zhang Lin, Joe’s friend in China, is outraged by the death of his 59
year old neighbour as a result of the severe air pollution in Beijing. He seeks a platform to discuss this
pertinent environmental issue, one of many that the Chinese government adamantly censors. Set
against the 2012 American elections, Kirkwood’s script presents historical events and contemporary
issues. The work sparks debates around the role and responsibility of media, specifically
photojournalism, the economic dichotomy in the West and China as well as the nature of censorship.
Based on the script, this guide explores Chimerica’s historical and social context, themes and structure in
order to offer an academic starting point for students and teachers. It is meant to be a helpful classroom
tool, providing educators with information for teaching diverse learners across a variety of subjects.
Furthermore, this play’s fictionalized context and poetic staging may be analyzed to appreciate how
performance art functions to connect us meaningfully to issues that seem foreign at first glance.
Relating to curriculums such as Visual Arts, Media Studies, Social Sciences and Humanities, Canadian and
World Issues, Business Studies, and of course Drama, this study guide can provide a bridge from the
stage to the classroom and encourage critical thinking.
I welcome you to contact me to further discuss the suitability of this production and supplementary
workshop opportunities for your group.
See you at the theatre!
Cheers,
Erin Schachter, Education & Audience Development Manager
416.367.8243 x280
[email protected]
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This study guide is created to be a helpful resource for teachers by providing background and thematic
information about this play as well as practical activities to use in your classroom. You are encouraged to
draw information directly from it as well as to use it as a roadmap for further exploration. In it you will
find:
Synopsis
Characters
Theatrical Context
About the Play
About the Playwright: Lucy Kirkwood
Study Links
Curriculum Relevant Discussion Questions
Drama
Visual Arts
Media Studies
Media Arts
Social Sciences and Humanities
Philosophy
Canadian and World Issues/Business Studies
Historical Context
Tiananmen Square Protests: A comprehensive timeline
Social Context
Photojournalism
Ethics of Photojournalism
The Many Images of the Tank Man
Dichotomy of The East and The West
Chimerica and Economic Theory
East vs. West in Chimerica
Censorship in China
Pollution in China
Classroom Activities
Works Cited
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4-5
5-6
5
5-6
6-8
8-12
8-9
9-10
10
10-11
11
11
12
12-17
12-17
17-21
17-33
18
22-25
26-29
26-27
27-29
29-31
31-33
33-37
38-39
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Synopsis
In June 1989 as tanks roll through Tiananmen Square, crushing the student protesters’ cries for
democracy, Joe, a young photojournalist from America, captures on film a moment of defiance that
comes to symbolize the struggle: an unarmed civilian who had stepped boldly right in front of a tank,
holding plastic bags in both hands. More than twenty years later, a mysterious note appears in a Beijing
newspaper and along with it comes a tip that the hero depicted is now living in America. Joe sets out to
find the unidentified Tank Man and establish what happened to him following that iconic moment. In
the meantime, Zhang Lin, Joe’s ally in China, is outraged by the death of his 59 year old neighbour as a
result of the severe air pollution in Beijing and leaks the story to his American journalist friend seeking a
platform to discuss the issue.
Set against the 2012 American elections, Lucy Kirkwood’s play examines the changing fortunes of two
countries, their tied fates, and the fates of all caught in between.
From the Author’s Notes:
It is a fact there was a Tank Man. It is a fact that photographs were taken
of him. Beyond that, everything that transpires in the play is an imaginative
leap.
This is especially the case with the journalist at the centre of the story, who
is not based in any way upon a real person, alive or dead. Nor is he an
amalgam of many of them. Joe is purely a fictional construct.
(Kirkwood 7)
Characters
Joe Shofield - photojournalist
Frank Hadley – Joe’s editor
Mel Stanwyck – Joe’s
journalist partner, writer
Tessa Kendrick – market
researcher, Joe’s love
interest
Zhang Lin – Joe’s main
contact in China, ESL teacher,
protesting Beijing pollution
Herb – American tourist from
Boston, Barb’s husband
Barb – American tourist from
Boston, Herb’s wife
Zhang Wei – Zhang Lin’s
brother, Benny’s father
Doreen – Frank’s assistant
Paul Kramer – Beijing
correspondent for The
Herald in 1989
Waitress
Young Zhang Lin
Liuli – Zhang Lin’s fiancé,
killed during Tiananmen
protests
Maria Dubiecki – a Democrat
senator in her fifties
David Barker – Maria’s
legislative assistant in his
twenties
Mary Chang – Chinese girl
living in New York, stripper,
fired from job in China for
accepting an ad related to
Tiananmen protests
Woman in Strip Club
Michelle – an AsianAmerican NYPD cop
Officer Hyte – Michelle’s
partner
Drug Dealer
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Jennifer Lee – Feng Meihui’s
daughter
Feng Meihui – Chinese
businesswoman living in NYC,
put memorial ads in Beijing
newspaper
Pengsi – Chinese, living in
NYC
Pengsi’s Wife
Ming Xiaoli – Zhang Lin’s
neighbour, 59
Kate – a British reporter at
Tiananmen Square
Deng – young Chinese
businesswoman
Peter Rourke – CEO of Mytel
computer systems, a US
company with an office in
Beijing, lives in Silicon Valley
Dawn – Peter’s secretary
Judy – Mytel’s lawyer
Guard
Benny - Zhang Lin’s nephew
Nurse
Theatrical Context
About the Play:
Chimerica premiered at the Almeida Theatre in London, England in a production co-produced with
Headlong on May 20, 2013. The production was remounted at the Harold Pinter Theatre in London’s
West End, August 6-October 19, 2013.
The play won the Laurence Olivier Award for Best New Play in 2014, received an Evening Standard
Award for Best Play, and won the 2014 Susan Smith Blackburn Prize for best new play in the English
language by a female writer.
This production is the North American debut.
About the Playwright: Lucy Kirkwood
"I generally think of myself as a smiley, chuckly person," she giggles. "But I guess I've got quite a dark
sense of humour." –Lucy Kirkwood (quoted in Jones)
"My problem is always I've got so much to say," she admits. "Writing is like a dog I'm trying to wash in a
bath. You let it go for a bit then you need to rein it back in." –Lucy Kirkwood (quoted in Jones)
From Clean Break website:
Lucy is an Olivier-award winning playwright (Chimerica 2014) and was resident playwright at Clean Break
for two years, during which she developed her play it felt empty when the heart went at first but it is
alright now, produced by Clean Break at the Arcola Theatre. The play was nominated for an Evening
Standard Award Best Newcomer award, the Susan Smith Blackburn award, and made Lucy joint winner
of the John Whiting Award 2010. Her stage adaptation of Beauty and the Beast co-devised with Katie
Mitchell was performed at the National Theatre in 2010/11 and nominated for an Olivier Award, and
Small Hours, co-written with Ed Hime, opened at the Hampstead Theatre in January 2011, directed by
Katie Mitchell. Other works include Tinderbox (Bush), Hedda (Gate), NSFW (Royal Court), Hansel and
Gretel (National Theatre) and Chimerica (Almeida). Lucy has written for Skins (Company Pictures) and is
developing an original TV series for Kudos and a screenplay for Film4 / Ruby Films.
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For more information on Lucy Kirkwood, see this article by Alice Jones published in The Independent:
http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/theatre-dance/features/lucy-kirkwood-britainsbrightest-young-stage-writer-1809848.html
Study Links
Subject Area
The Arts
Sample Courses
Drama – ADA 3M
Also applicable to ADA 4M and
other senior drama courses
Media Arts – ASM 4M
Also applicable to ASM 3M
Visual Arts – AVI 4M
Also applicable to AVI 3M and
other senior level Visual Arts
courses
Curriculum Connections
B1.2 analyse drama works to determine how they
communicate ideas about issues, culture, and
society
B1.3 analyse and evaluate the aesthetic and
technical aspects of drama works of diverse genres
and styles
C1.1 identify and describe the forms, elements,
conventions, and techniques used in a variety
of drama styles, and explain how they help
achieve specific purposes and effects
C3.3 demonstrate an understanding of correct
theatre worker and audience etiquette in
classroom drama work and formal performance
contexts
B2.1 analyse, on the basis of investigation, how
media art works can express the evolution of
artists’ personal identities over time
B2.3 analyse, on the basis of investigation, how
media art works can serve as a catalyst for
changing community or societal values
C2.1 analyse in detail the connections between
a contemporary media art work and related
historical art works
B1.1 demonstrate the ability to support their
initial responses to a variety of art works with
informed understanding of the works’ artistic
form and function
B1.3 explain in detail, with reference to a variety
of historical and contemporary art works
how knowledge of a work’s cultural and historical
context, achieved through extensive
research, has clarified and enriched their
understanding and interpretation of a work’s
intent and meaning
B2.2 assess the impact of socio-economic, political,
cultural, and/or spiritual factors on the production
of art works
C3.1 demonstrate an understanding of legal and
ethical issues related to the appropriation of
virtual, intellectual, or physical property
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English
English – ENG 4U
Also applicable to ENG 3U and
other senior level English courses
Media Studies – EMS 3O
Social
Sciences and
Humanities
Equity and Social Justice: From
Theory to Practice HSE 4M
Challenge and Change in Society
– HSB 4U
and apply legal and ethical practices when creating
and displaying art works
Oral Communication:
1.5 develop and explain interpretations of oral
texts, including complex and challenging texts,
using evidence from the text and the oral and
visual cues used in it insightfully to support their
interpretations
Reading and Literature Studies:
1.6 analyse texts in terms of the information,
ideas, issues, or themes they explore, examining
how various aspects of the texts contribute to the
presentation or development of these elements
Media Studies:
1.4 explain, with increasing insight, why the same
media text might prompt different responses
from different audiences
1.6 explain, with increasing understanding and
insight, how production, marketing, financing,
distribution, and legal/regulatory factors
influence the media industry
A1.2 identify and explain the messages in and
meanings of media texts
A2.2 analyse how the language, tone, and point of
view used in media texts work to influence the
interpretation of messages
B1.2 analyse media representations of current
social, political, and cultural issues and events, and
explain how the representations might affect
the audience’s interpretation of the issues
B1.4 analyse ways in which social and cultural
belief systems can affect perspectives on and
decisions relating to equity and social justice issues
B2.1 analyse the dynamics of power relations and
privilege in various social settings, both historical
and contemporary
B3.3 demonstrate an understanding of various
ways in which media and popular culture can be
used to raise awareness of equity and social justice
issues
C1.3 analyse the role of economics and
globalization in promoting or impeding equity or
social justice
B2.2 explain how various economic,
environmental, political, or sociocultural factors
can lead to social change, and how other factors
can create resistance to change
B3.2 explain how various new technologies can
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World Cultures – HSC 4M
Philosophy: The Big Questions –
HZB 3M
also applicable to HZT 4U
Canadian and
World
Studies
Canadian and World Issues: A
Geographic Analysis – CGW 4U
Also applicable to other senior
level Geography courses
World History Since 1900: Global
and Regional Perspectives – CHT
3O
Also applicable to other senior
level History courses
affect social structures and interactions
B1.3 describe multiple ways in which culture can
influence an individual’s perceptions, attitudes,
and behaviours and can shape social institutions
and practices
B2.3 analyse ways in which culture is transmitted
between groups and how processes of
transmission can result in changes to cultures,
including loss of traditional culture
D1.5 assess the effects of cultural imperialism on
cultures around the world
B2.2 compare how different philosophers have
answered the same big question
D1.2 explain the relevance of some of the big
questions of philosophy to their community and
the broader society
Identify ways in which countries and
regions of the world are becoming increasingly
interdependent
Analyse how and why certain individuals
have become the accepted symbols of
national or international movements
Describe factors that have interfered with
individual and group rights since the
beginning of the twentieth century
Curriculum Relevant Discussion Questions
Drama

Much of Chimerica suggests a naturalistic staging. This, and select other moments, stand in stark
contrast.
ZHANG LIN looks at LIULI. Many LIULIs enter. Red dresses flood the stage.
ZHANG LIN is surrounded by them. ZHANG LIN begins to type. We keep
sight of him, typing quickly, as if thousands of miles away.
(Kirkwood 63)
What do you think is Kirkwood’s intent in including these poetic moments and images? What
themes or ideas might she be trying to highlight? If you were to direct a production of Chimerica
how would you approach these moments?

Before now there has only been a single production of Chimerica. The designer of that set used
a rotating stage which made the constant and quick passage of location possible. How did the
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designer of the Canadian Stage production address this challenge? How would you approach a
set to accommodate a script in which the setting changes so frequently?
Visual Arts

What are the roles of artists in social movements?
JOE. Yeah but, forget the shopping, that’s not – that’s a picture of heroism,
it really, it changed things, you know?
TESS. Yeah but don’t most of your photos do that?
JOE. Fuck no. I wish.
....
TESS. So why d’you bother then? If you think taking pictures can’t change
anything –
JOE. Because it used to.
TESS. You mean, all that: because the Vietnam war wasn’t lost on the
battlefields of Vietnam, it was lost in the living rooms of America,
right?
JOE. Right! Right, and that was because of photographs. No-one could
forget what was happening out there when the blood was right
there in Technicolor for the very first time. But living rooms now,
they’re full of war. Full of famine, full of genocide. Atrocity’s just
another pattern in the chintz.
,
TESS. I bet you’re really fun at parties, aren’t you?
JOE. Yeah, they call me the buzz-killer. Look, I don’t think there’s more
tragedy in the world, I just think, well I guess there are just more
cameras. There are school-kids armed with iPhones who do my job
way better than me now. And it seems like, well to me anyway, it
seems like maybe photographs are like people. The more there are
of them, the less any individual one means.
(Kirkwood 39)
Compare photographs that document social movements throughout history (like the Tank Man
photo) with photographs that document more current social movements (the Arab Spring,
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Ferguson Unrest, student protests in Montreal). Do you think photos have the same impact
today as they did 20 years ago?

Kirkwood opens her play with the quote “Images transfix. Images anaesthetise” (Susan Sontag).
What do you think this quote means? How does it manifest itself in the play?

Is a photojournalist an artist? A difficult debate, with many perspectives. Consider the quotes
found at http://photoquotations.com/s/113/Photojournalism. How do these philosophies
support or challenge your own ideas?
Media Studies

Consider the different versions of the Tank Man photo and video footage from the same event.
How do these media representations portray social, political, and cultural issues? How could
these representations affect people’s interpretations of the issues and events depicted?

“People portrayed in images of photojournalism are, in some ways, our avatars. . . through the
frame we enter a timeless world of the other by taking on the other’s image self—how else can
we understand what we see unless we have some memory, some frame of reference, for
empathy, myth, understanding?” (Newton 89). Do you think Joe takes on the identity of the
Tank Man in his quest for the truth? How is Joe’s understanding of the Tank Man’s actions in
1989 changed when the true story is revealed through Zhang Lin’s past?

“We somehow were brought up with the notion that documentary pictures were the equivalent
of a testimony that was credible because it was a photograph” (Newton 94). A picture is worth
1,000 words, but who decides what those words are? The subject? The photographer? The
editor? The viewer?

How do competing factors influence Frank’s decisions about what stories his news magazine
should cover? How does an awareness of the influence of outside parties on news coverage
impact the way you access and interpret the news?

In journalism, what are the challenges inherent in differentiating between fact and opinion? Are
there any areas where the boundaries blur? (Trivett et. al. 10)

Is it the responsibility of the reader to regulate the press by not buying newspapers that they do
not think are ethical? (Trivett et. al. 10)
Media Arts

At Joe’s exhibit two very different images are prominently featured:
A gallery, midtown Manhattan. Images of protest on the walls. JOE’s shot
of the Tank Man. Next to a close up of TESS, grinning, milk running down
her face.
(Kirkwood 98)
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How might the choice to show these two images next to each other reflect Joe’s journey as a
character? Furthermore, how might the curation of these images impact the viewers’
interpretation of each of them?
Social Sciences and Humanities

What impact do you think the increasing consolidation of media ownership has had on the
reporting of social justice issues? How is this manifested in Chimerica?

How has the rise of China as a global economic power affected human rights in that country? In
other countries?

What evidence of globalization is seen throughout the play? How is globalization positive?
Negative?

How do different cultural perspectives lead to conflicts or misunderstandings between
characters in Chimerica?
Philosophy

What are different philosophical perspectives that relate to globalization or social change? How
would these philosophers interpret events in Chimerica?

What role do artists play in society according to different philosopher or philosophical
traditions?

Joe feels as if it would be unethical to use some of his political photos on a credit card:
JOE. That river, those kids are fishing in? It’s one of the most polluted
rivers in the world, the rate of childhood mortality in that village is –
TESS. It’s a great image.
JOE. Sure only there’s a fucking ceiling on how much money I want to
make from a bunch o kids dying in a developing country okay?
(Kirkwood 39)
Identify the ethical dilemma he is facing and explain it using philosophical schools of thought.
Extension: how does Joe’s dilemma relate to the more general argument of utilizing images of
war and other crises for personal gain including financial and fame? Identify instances when this
has occurred and the conversations that resulted.
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Canadian and World Issues/Business Studies

Compare the Western and Chinese economic markets. Refer to section on Dichotomy of the
East/West below.
TESS. I categorise people. By, well, anything, purchasing habits, political
affiliations, sexual politics. I’m refining the profiling system
that...this company uses, we have a Western model but it has to be
adapted to the Chinese market.
(Kirkwood 18)
Historical Context
Tiananmen Square Protests:
A comprehensive timeline
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/tankman/cron/
The spring of 1989 saw the largest pro-democracy demonstration in the history of China's communist
regime. The following timeline tracks how the protests began in April among university students in
Beijing, spread across the nation, and ended on June 4 with a final deadly assault by an estimated force
of 300,000 soldiers from the People's Liberation Army (PLA). Throughout the demonstration, China's
leaders were deeply divided over how to handle the unrest, with one faction advocating peaceful
negotiation and another demanding a crackdown. Excerpts from their statements, drawn from The
Tiananmen Papers, reveal these internal divisions.
April 17:
Tens of thousands of university students begin gathering spontaneously in Tiananmen Square, Beijing,
the nation's symbolic central space. They come to mourn the death of Hu Yoabang, former General
Secretary of the Communist Party. To them, Hu had been a symbol of anti-corruption and political
reform. In his name, the students call for freedom of the press and other reforms.
April 18-21: Unrest Spreads
Demonstrations escalate in Beijing and spread to other cities and universities. Workers and officials join
in with complaints about inflation, salaries and housing. Party leaders fear the demonstrations might
lead to chaos and rebellion. One group lead by Premier Li Peng, second-ranking in the Party hierarchy,
suspects "black hands" of "bourgeois liberal elements" are working behind the scenes to undermine the
government. A minority faction, led by Party General Secretary Zhao Ziyang, believes that "the student
mainstream is good" and that their patriotism should be affirmed, "although any inappropriate methods
of action should be pointed out to them."
Li argues that the protests should be "nipped in the bud". However, Zhao convinces them to wait,
stating "our main task right now is to be sure the memorial service for Comrade Yaobang goes off
smoothly."
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April 22:
More than 100,000 university students assemble outside the Great Hall of the People, where Hu's
memorial service is being held. Three students carry a petition of demands up the steps of the Great Hall
and insist on meeting Li Peng; he does not respond. Over the next days, the students boycott classes and
organize into unofficial student unions—an illegal act in China.
April 25:
With Zhao Ziyang on a state visit to North Korea, Li Peng calls a meeting of the Politburo; a meeting
dominated by Party members antagonistic to the students. They convince Party elder Deng Xiaoping, the
de facto head of state, that the students aim to overthrow him and the Communist Party. Deng decides
the Party has thus far been "tolerant and restrained," but the time has come for action. "We must
explain to the whole Party and nation that we are facing a most serious political struggle. … We've got to
be explicit and clear in opposing this turmoil."
April 26: Editorial Denounces the Students
"The Necessity for a Clear Stand Against Turmoil," (read the full translation) appears in the state-run
newspaper, the People's Daily. This editorial closely follows the opinions expressed by Deng at the
meeting the day before. "This is a well-planned plot … to confuse the people and throw the country into
turmoil," it reads. "… Its real aim is to reject the Chinese Communist Party and the socialist system at the
most fundamental level."
April 27:
The editorial sets off more demonstrations in other cities. In Tiananmen Square the ranks of protestors
now include a cross-section of society. "In Beijing one in 10 of the population was joining in … all of the
old people, all the little children, so it was massive," explains Jan Wong, a foreign journalist in Beijing at
the time. "You had doctors and nurses and scientists and army people demonstrating. The Chinese navy
was demonstrating, and I thought, 'This is extraordinary because who's left? It's just the top leaders who
aren't out there.'"
April 23-May 3: The World is Watching
Party leaders are aware of the growing foreign press coverage of the demonstrations, but remain split
over how to stop the protests and get the students to return to classes. Zhao Ziyang's camp advocates
negotiation and stresses that the government should address legitimate complaints, such as the need
for political reform. Li Peng and his allies argue that social stability must be restored before any reforms
can be considered.
May 4:
Tens of thousands of students march into Tiananmen Square to commemorate the 70th anniversary of
the 1919 "May Fourth Movement," which also took place in the square. They pledge to return to classes
the next day, but intend to keep pressing for reforms.
Zhao Ziyang, in a speech to foreign bankers, expresses support for the students' "patriotism" and
essentially contradicts the government's April 26 editorial. This angers senior Party members.
May 5-12:
Many students return to classes, and the movement is in flux and lacks clear leadership. Certain factions
plan more demonstrations and a hunger strike. Meanwhile, tension escalates within the Party as they
prepare for Soviet Party Secretary Mikhail Gorbachev's historic visit to Beijing.
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Deng Xiaoping wants to settle things peacefully, but insists the students must be out of the square
before Gorbachev arrives. Zhao, unable to convince the students to call off the demonstrations, begins
to lose favour with the senior Party members.
May 13: Hunger Strike
Anticipating Soviet Party Secretary Mikhail Gorbachev's visit, about 160 students begin a hunger strike in
Tiananmen Square, citing the government's failure to respond to their requests for dialogue. One of the
printed manifestos reads: "The nation is in crisis—beset by rampant inflation, illegal dealing by
profiteering officials, abuses of power, corrupt bureaucrats, the flight of good people to other countries
and deterioration of law and order. Compatriots, fellow countrymen who cherish morality, please hear
our voices!"
Their hunger strike draws broad public support; many important intellectuals pledge their help. "There's
such a feeling in China about food because of the thousands of years of famines that they've had,"
explains Jan Wong. "… So when the students went on their hunger strike, it really moved people to
tears."
May 15: "Loss of Face"
Mikhail Gorbachev arrives in Beijing for the first Sino-Soviet summit since 1959, but the hunger strike
forces the government to cancel plans to welcome him in Tiananmen Square. His escort is blocked by
protestors on nearly every street in Beijing. "[F]or the Chinese government, [this was] a big loss of face,
very scary," says Jan Wong. "… They were aware of what was happening in the Soviet Union -- and so
were the Chinese people -- that the Communist Party in the Soviet Union was more or less imploding.
[The Party leaders] were very frightened in China."
May 16: Divided Politburo
More than 3,000 people are now participating in the hunger strike. The embarrassing protests during
Gorbachev's visit further polarizes the Politburo. During an emergency meeting, Zhao maintains that the
way to end the strike is for the government to retract its April 26 editorial, accept the students' demand
for dialogue and begin reforms.
"[T]he vast majority of student demonstrators are patriotic and sincerely concerned for our country. We
may not approve of all of their methods, but their demand to promote democracy, to deepen the
reforms and to root out corruption are quite reasonable," says Zhao.
Li Peng insists the government cannot capitulate: "It's more and more clear that a tiny minority is trying
to use the turmoil to reach its political goal, which is repudiation of Communist Party leadership and the
socialist system." Li says. "Their goals are to topple the Chinese Communist Party … to completely
repudiate the people's democratic dictatorship."
May 17: Plans for Martial Law
When the case is put to Deng Xiaoping, he decides against Zhao's recommendations and proposes
instituting martial law to end the hunger strike. "The aim … will be to suppress the turmoil once and for
all and to return things quickly to normal," he is reported to have said. "This is the unshakable duty of
the Party and the government." Zhao expresses his problems with this position but concedes: "I will
submit to Party discipline; the minority does yield to the majority."
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May 18: Li Peng Meets With Students
Zhao Ziyang visits hospitalized hunger strikers and tries to convince them to call off their fast. Afterward,
he is reported to have drafted a letter of resignation to the Politburo, but it is never sent. Li Peng holds a
televised meeting with student leaders in the Great Hall of the People (see a map of Tiananmen Square).
It ends without any progress. (Read the translated transcript of the meeting.)
That evening a meeting of Party elders and Politburo members, including Deng Xiaoping and Li Peng,
approves the declaration of martial law. Zhao Ziyang does not attend.
May 19: Martial Law Declared
Student leaders learn of the plan to declare martial law and call off their hunger strike. Instead, they
stage a mass sit-in in Tiananmen Square that draws about 1.2 million supporters, including members of
the police and military and industrial workers. Zhao Ziyang appears in Tiananmen Square in a final,
unsuccessful effort to appeal for compromise. It is his last public appearance. He is soon removed from
office and replaced by Jiang Zemin.
That evening, Li Peng appears on state television to declare martial law. "We must adopt firm and
resolute measures to end the turmoil swiftly, to maintain the leadership of the party as well as the
socialist system." (Read a translation of his speech.)
May 20: The Army Is Sent Into Beijing
For the first time in 40 years of Communist rule, the PLA troops attempt to occupy Beijing. A huge
number of civilian protestors block their convoys on the streets. Beijingers begin a dialogue with the
soldiers, trying to explain to them why they shouldn't be there. "You had these … touching moments of
the people appealing to the army to join them, and feeding them, and giving them water, and saying,
you know, 'Could be your son. Could be your daughter,'" says Orville Schell, who was in Beijing at the
time. "And [you have] these sort of doe-eyed, puzzled soldiers, who were mostly country people,
weren't experienced with big city life, just wondering what was going on here. And not wanting to hurt
anybody."
The soldiers have been ordered not to fire on civilians, even if provoked. They are stuck—unable to
reach the protestors in Tiananmen Square and unable to withdraw from the city—for almost three days.
May 24: The PLA Withdraws
The troops finally are able to leave, but the government views the whole episode as another humiliation
and challenge to its power. "The party leaders feared that the whole edifice of communism was going to
collapse," says journalist John Pomfret. "They needed to make a stand, and a bloody stand, to show
their population, and in effect, to cow their population, back into submission."
May 25 - June 1: A New Offensive
Over the next week, the demonstrations continue, and Beijing operates with no real police presence and
with a virtually free press. In Tiananmen Square, the atmosphere is jubilant, but at government
headquarters, Deng Xiaoping is devising a new offensive to end the protest. Armed troops will be sent in
from every military district in the country.
"I think the leaders felt that they had been thwarted in the most obvious and humiliating manner, "says
Orville Schell. "The second time around they brought in troops from far away who didn't have
connections to Beijing, whose kids weren't in the square. And they decided they would brook no
obstacle."
15
June 2:
The Party elders approve the decision to put down the "counterrevolutionary riot" and clear the square
with military force. Most hope it can be done without casualties. Unaware of what was about to happen,
Hou Dejian, a Chinese rock star, and three prominent intellectuals start a hunger strike in Tiananmen
Square. Demonstrators continue their sit-in and their calls for democratic reforms.
June 3: The Assault Begins
As word spreads that hundreds of thousands of troops are approaching from all four corners of the city,
Beijingers flood the streets to block them, as they had done two weeks earlier. People set up barricades
at every major intersection. At about 10:30 p.m., near the Muxidi apartment buildings—home to highlevel Party officials and their families—the citizens become aggressive as the army tries to break through
their barricades. They yell at the soldiers and some throw rocks; someone sets a bus on fire. The soldiers
start firing on the unarmed civilians with AK-47s loaded with battlefield ammunition.
"The first rounds of fire catch everybody by surprise," recalls human rights observer Timothy Brook.
"The people in the streets don't expect this to happen." The wounded are taken to nearby hospitals on
bicycles and pull-carts, but the hospital staff are unequipped to deal with the severe wounds. Muxidi
sees the highest casualties of the night; an untold number of people are killed.
June 4: The Massacre Continues
At about 1:00 a.m., the People's Liberation Army finally reaches Tiananmen Square and waits for orders
from the government. The soldiers have been told not to open fire, but they have also been told that
they must clear the square by 6:00 a.m. with no exceptions or delays. They make a final offer of amnesty
if the few thousand remaining students will leave. About 4:00 a.m., student leaders put the matter to a
vote: Leave the square, or stay and face the consequences. "It was clear to me that the stay votes were
much, much, much stronger," recalls eyewitness John Pomfret, who was near the students. "But Feng
Congde, who was a student leader at the time, said, 'The go's have it.'" The students vacate the square
under the gaze of thousands of soldiers.
Later that morning, some people -- believed to be the parents of the student protestors -- try to re-enter
Tiananmen Square via Chang'an Boulevard. The soldiers order them to leave, and when they don't, open
fire, taking down dozens of people at a time. According to eyewitness accounts, the citizens seem not to
believe the army is firing on them with real ammunition.
"[A]fter a little while, like 40 minutes, people would gather up their nerve again and would crawl back to
the corner and start screaming at the soldiers, and then the commander would eventually give another
signal … and they'd shoot more in the backs," remembers journalist Jan Wong, who watched it all from
her hotel room above the boulevard. "And this went on more than half a dozen times in the day." When
rescue workers try to approach the street to remove the wounded, they, too, are shot.
No one knows for certain how many people died over the two days. The Chinese Red Cross initially
reported 2,600, but quickly retracted that figure under intense pressure from the government. The
official Chinese government figure is 241 dead, including soldiers, and 7,000 wounded.
June 5: A Moment that Fascinated the World
By the morning of June 5, the army is in complete control of Beijing. But when all protest in the city
seems silenced, the world witnessed one final act of defiance.
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About midday, as a column of tanks slowly moves along Chang'an Boulevard toward Tiananmen Square,
an unarmed young man carrying shopping bags suddenly steps out in front of the tanks. Instead of
running over him, the first tank tries to go around, but the young man steps in front of it again. They
repeat this maneuver several more times before the tank stops and turns off its motor. The young man
climbs on top of the tank and speaks to the driver before jumping back down again. Soon, the young
man is whisked to the side of the road by an unidentified group of people and disappears into the
crowd. To this day, who he was and what became of him remains a mystery.
Epilogue:
In the weeks following the Tiananmen massacre, Chinese officials maintain the perspective that hordes
of "counterrevolutionaries" rampaged in Beijing and throughout China, justifying the government’s
forceful end to the rebellion. Tens of thousands of Chinese people are arrested, many are imprisoned,
and an unknown number are executed. The government states "not one person" was killed in
Tiananmen Square and only 241 people died when PLA troops and "rioters" fought in the streets.
In September 1989, Beijing officials set up an exhibit at the city's military museum to explain why they
had to forcefully end the "anti-government riot." It features more than 4,000 exhibits: burned out tanks
and armoured personnel carriers, photographs of soldiers who had been burned to death or hanged
from overpasses, photos of burning buses, and clashes between students and police in riot gear. There is
also a film depicting the army's efforts to restore order. The exhibit features some essays on democracy
written by dissident Fang Lizhi, exhibited as an example of the misguided beliefs about Chinese
communism that led to the demonstrations. Fang’s essay is one of the most popular sections of the
exhibit since his writing is otherwise banned in China.
On June 4, 1994—the fifth anniversary of the Tiananmen massacre— Li Peng, stills serving as Premier,
announces new security regulations defining political discussions outside the Party line as sabotage.
In June 2004, the government produces a five-hour documentary on the Tiananmen 1989 protests,
portraying them as "counterrevolutionary rebellion," and requiring officials around the country to view
it.
Social Context
Photojournalism
Through Chimerica and Joe’s quest to discover the fate of the Tank Man, Kirkwood poses many
questions about the craft of photojournalism and the ethical debates around it. Kirkwood prefaces her
script with the quote, “Images transfix. Images anaesthetise.” These words from Susan Sontag, author
of On Photography and Regarding the Pain of Others (resources Kirkwood credits in her Author’s Note),
succinctly contextualize the conversation.
In a brief history of photojournalism, Dillon Westbrook says “consumers depend upon photojournalists
to bring them the images that allow them to feel connected to far-away realities, and to be educated
about those realities” (Westbrook). Susan Sontag elaborates with the claim that “photographs reify.
They turn an event into something that one can possess” (Sontag). Westbrook and Sontag highlight that
photographs have the ability to transport viewers and have a subsequently unique impact on viewers
compared to written or oral reporting.
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Technology is to credit for the birth of photojournalism. The creation of a portable and reliable 35 mm
camera in 1925 provided an opportunity to see images of far-away places and events.
TESS. The Vietnam War wasn’t lost on the battlefields of Vietnam, it was
lost in the living rooms of America, right?
(Kirkwood 57)
Charles Cole, one of the photographers who captured a Tank Man photo in 1989, stated that “During
this time I’m thinking this guy is going to be killed any moment now, and if he is I just can’t miss this.
This is something that he’s giving his life for”. He goes on to define that “it’s [his] responsibility to record
it as accurately as possible.”
According to Julianne H. Newton, a scholar and former photographer, “what good photojournalists do is
seek to understand humankind by understanding human life and showing it to other humans. Good
photojournalists seek to know themselves by knowing others” (Newton 88). Alex Danchev, essayist on
the subjects of art, war and terror, expands on this sentiment with the claim that “Photographs reshape
the space of appearance. They help us to recognize others – faraway others, in countries of which we
know little – and in the process to recognize ourselves” (Danchev). But what is the legacy of a
photograph?
TESS. I just, I can’t believe you took that. I had it on my wall when I was a
student, next to Che Guevara and the Stone Roses.
(Kirkwood 40)
Sontag states that “The problem is not, in [her] view, that people remember through photographs, but
they tend, increasingly, to remember only the photographs” (Sontag). In the context of Chimerica, this is
an especially rich statement for several reasons. Consider, for instance, that while based on a real
photograph, Kirkwood’s play is admittedly fictional. Also relevant is the consideration that due to
extreme censorship in China, many people who were not yet alive in 1989 have never even seen the
Tank Man and have restricted access to learning more about this iconic image. In contrast is a quote
from J.G. Ballard that appears in the preface to Kirkwood’s published script: “I believe in the power of
the imagination to remake the world, to release the truth within us, to hold back the night, to transcend
death, to charm motorways, to ingratiate ourselves with birds, to enlist the confidences of madmen”.
Ethics of Photojournalism
“On one end of the ethical continuum, an idealized photojournalist visually captures history,
documenting moments and people for the world’s diary. On the other end of the ethical continuum, a
photojournalist is little more than a scavenger, a voyeur turning tragedy and victory into commodities
for sale” (Newton 88).
Within the sector of photojournalism there is a code of ethics that reins the practice.
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From the Canadian Association of Journalist Ethics Guidelines:
 Photojournalists and videographers do not alter images or sound so that they mislead the
public. When we do alter or stage images, we label them clearly (as a photo illustration or a
staged video, for example).
 We serve democracy and the public interest by reporting the truth. This sometimes conflicts
with various public and private interests, including those of sources, governments, advertisers
and, on occasion, with our duty and obligation to an employer.
From the Society of Professional Journalist Code of Ethics:
 Ethical journalism treats sources, subjects, colleagues and members of the public as human
beings deserving of respect.
 Journalists should . . . never deliberately distort facts or context, including visual information.
Clearly label illustrations and re-enactments.
 Show compassion for those who may be affected by news coverage. Use heightened sensitivity.
Select clauses from the National Press Photographers Association Code of Ethics include:
 Be accurate and comprehensive in the representation of subjects.
 Resist being manipulated by staged photo opportunities.
 Be complete and provide context when photographing or recording subjects.
 Avoid stereotyping individuals and groups.
 Recognize and work to avoid presenting one's own biases in the work.
 Treat all subjects with respect and dignity. Give special consideration to vulnerable subjects and
compassion to victims of crime or tragedy. Intrude on private moments of grief only when the
public has an overriding and justifiable need to see.
 While photographing subjects, do not intentionally contribute to, alter, or seek to alter or
influence events.
 Editing should maintain the integrity of the photographic images' content and context. Do not
manipulate images or add or alter sound in any way that can mislead viewers or misrepresent
subjects.
 Respect the integrity of the photographic moment.
The ethics of photojournalism are heavily debated. Issues of consent, context, and voyeurism are
commonly raised among photojournalists and critics. Alex Danchev discusses the intentions of
photographers, saying “they are witnesses. But they are not neutral. They have a point of view – they
are against forgetting” (Danchev).
JOE. Frank, this guy, he’s my age. I think I’m about to watch him get shot.
Silence. JOE picks up his camera. Starts taking pictures.
(Kirkwood 13-14)
The evolution of technology, increased access to cameras, and myriad ways of sharing images
collectively contribute to photojournalism’s increased complexities:
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“In the early days of newspaper journalism the photojournalist’s role was relatively
straightforward. Armed with a camera he captured a moment in time. . .The
photojournalist emerged with a snippet of reality, ready to show the truth to the public.
Today, the ethics of photojournalism goes far beyond the ethics of the newspaper photo. It
includes the millions of news-related images that appear on our televisions, cell phones,
computer screens and other multi-media devices. We are an image-saturated world”
(Burkholder).
Kirkwood addresses this evolution head-on in Chimerica.
JOE. There are school-kids armed with iPhones who do my job way better
than me now. And it seems like, well to me anyway, it seems like maybe
photographs are like people. The more there are of them, the less any
individual one means.
(Kirkwood 58)
The ethics of photojournalism are further complicated by the number of parties associated with an
image: the subject of the photo, the photographer, the editor publishing the photo, and the viewer.
The impact of photojournalism on the individual is explored in Chimerica. Consider for instance how
Frank, the newspaper’s editor, selects what photographs are featured and how the stakes (fame,
monetary) associated with landing a prominent position in print media affect the photojournalist.
JOE. You gonna give me a front page Frank?
FRANK. Yes Joey, I think three hundred Chinese people being gunned down
by their own government warrants a little more than a hundred words on
page six, don’t you?
(Kirkwood 13)
Consider the relationship between the photojournalist, often a tourist as in Joe’s case, and the subject of
the photograph; a person or situation that is often sensitive or traumatic in nature:
JOE. Yeah I know, only I saw it tooZHANG LIN. Yes, up in your hotel room, taking pictures. Behind your
camera, plane ticket in your pocket. I was there. Down there, in the
square.
(Kirkwood 25)
Photojournalist Don McCullin is known for his photographs of war and urban strife. He speaks of his
tactics to ensure he delivers the most respectful, honest, and dignified work he can: “I would look at the
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person I was photographing and I would try and convey my disgust to them, you know, and I would try
to bring them to me in a trusting way” (Don McCullin quoted by Mackay). The impact of this
responsibility on the photojournalist is further illustrated by McCullin who said, “I’ve got a last chapter
of my life now and I want it to be enjoyable. I don’t want to persecuted by myself anymore, by my guilt,
cause I’ve had all that” (Don McCullin quoted by Mackay).
Julianne H. Newton notes that in the end, “intentionality becomes an issue. . . Does a photographer
intend to show the truth or deceive? Does an editor tend to convey the truth of an event or to use an
image to startle or draw a reader/viewer? Does a viewer engage an image with the conscious intent to
determine authenticity and respect the human framed within? Or does the viewer read the image
through the filters of uniformed, nonconscious prejudice, seeing only what she or he chooses to see?”
(Newton 89). Alex Danchev adds that “photographs may be documents, photographs may be
indictments. Depending on our engagement with them, they may also be instruments of the
imagination” (Danchev). A picture is worth 1,000 words, but who decides what those words are?
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The Many Images of the Tank Man
From the Author’s Note in Chimerica:
“...the image of the Tank Man we are familiar with in fact exists in a number of forms in common
currency. There are at least six recognised versions, the play takes place in an imagined universe in
which there are seven. In reality, Jeff Widener’s is the most famous, and *the one used, with
permission,+ in the publicity for the play.” (Kirkwood 7)
In June 2009, to mark the 20th anniversary of the Tank Man episode The New York Times published an indepth look at four known versions of the image all taken from the Beijing Hotel. The article offers
anecdotes from each photojournalist and discusses the images’ distinguishing characteristics. In
response to this article, a fifth photojournalist came forward presenting a photograph that was taken
from street level; offering a perspective that may provide even more context to the mysterious iconic
moment. A video of the Tank Man (available on Youtube here) was also brought to the publication’s
attention.
The following is cited from Behind the Scenes: Tank Man of Tiananmen on The New York Times Lens
Blog. Read the full article here.
Photo by Charlie Cole
Charlie Cole was in Beijing on June 5, 1989 for Newsweek magazine. His version of the moment is tight
— three stacked tanks, painted lines in the road emphasizing the direction of the tanks, all paths leading
towards one man. The details are clear and striking: the red star on the tank and the bags held by the
man, making it seem like his protest was an afterthought on the way home from work or from the
market. Simple, striking, and powerful.
“I think his action captured peoples’ hearts everywhere, and when the moment came, his
character defined the moment, rather than the moment defining him. He made the image. I was
just one of the photographers. And I felt honored to be there.” –Charles Cole
22
Photo by Stuart Franklin
Stuart Franklin’s photograph feels like a painting. Mr. Franklin, a Magnum photographer on assignment
to Time magazine, was shooting from the rooftop with Mr. Cole. He gives us the entire scene. The lone
figure’s small space in the frame emphasizes what he’s up against — a burned bus looms in the
background, broken remains of the previous night’s violent clashes. Shadows dominate the left side, like
storm clouds.
“The film was smuggled out in a packet of tea by a French student and delivered to the Magnum
office in Paris.” –Stuart Franklin
Photo by Jeff Widener
Jeff Widener framed his picture a little tighter, similar to Mr. Cole’s, but with an additional tank in the
frame and a street light protruding mysteriously from the bottom. Mr. Widener’s version, shot for The
Associated Press, was probably the most circulated of the four. It was made from a lower floor of the
hotel, closest to the ground, and captured a face-to-face meeting between the lone man and the driver
of the first tank.
23
“Suddenly, some guy in a white shirt runs out in front and I said to Kurt/Kirk, ‘Damn it — that
guy’s going to screw up my composition.’ Kurt/Kirk shouted, ‘They are going to kill him!’ I focused
my Nikon 400mm 5.6 ED IF lens and waited for the instant he would be shot. But he was not.” –
Jeff Widener
Photo by Arthur Tsang Hin Wah
Arthur Tsang Hin Wah of Reuters was beaten two nights earlier by students who mistook him for a spy.
His photograph of the tank man, divided into thirds by two light poles, was taken seconds before the
others, as the tanks jostled for position behind the lone man. The burned bus looms heavy in Mr.
Tsang’s version.
24
Later released: photo by Terril Jones
Terril Jones’ photograph surfaced after the other versions were published in the aforementioned blog
post. The photographer posts the image with a thorough account of his experience on June 5, 1989 and
explains his reasoning for holding on to the image in an online article found here.
“I took the photo on June 5, 1989, as a reporter for The Associated Press covering the Tiananmen
Square protests and military crackdown on protesters in Beijing. It’s a shot of the man who had
the famous confrontation with the line of Chinese army tanks, a different angle of the well-known
image that we’ve all seen of Man vs. Tank.”
“I realized that one of my photos had captured a different angle of that signature confrontation,
well before the tanks reached the defiant man.” – Terril Jones
25
Dichotomy of The East and The West
Chimerica and Economic Theory
Many scholars see Tiananmen Square as the catalyst for change in China, but not in the way that the
world had expected:
“Contrary to almost universal western expectations after Tiananmen Square in 1989, the
Communist party not only survived but reinvented itself and, over the last 30 years, has
presided over the most remarkable economic transformation in human history” (Martin
Jacques).
The economic and industrial growth in the decades following Tiananmen, according to scholars,
reinvented the country and solidified its place as a global economic power. This power and the resulting
global shifts are put under the microscope in Kirkwood’s play.
In Chimerica, the relationship between China and America’s shifting economies, industries, and cultures
is addressed. The term “Chimerica” is a term coined by economists Niall Ferguson and Moritz Schularick.
Ferguson expands on this theory in an article for The American Interest magazine published in January of
2009, following the 2008 economic crisis:
“The most important thing to understand about the world economy over the past decade
has been the relationship between China and America. If you think of it as one economy
called Chimerica, that relationship accounts for around 13 percent of the world’s land
surface, a quarter of its population, about a third of its gross domestic product, and
somewhere over half of the global economic growth of the past six years. For a time, it was
a symbiotic relationship that seemed like a marriage made in heaven. Put simply, one half
did the saving, the other half the spending” (Ferguson).
Ferguson suggests that the Chinese tendency to save and convert their currency encouraged U.S.
spending by providing them with easily accessible, low interest loans in American dollars. This was
accomplished by “adopting currency pegs and accumulating international reserves, thereby financing
Western current account deficits” (Ferguson). Essentially, China saved and invested money into
international (American) bonds and securities. These funds supported the American borrowing habit,
diluting the economic power of the U.S. when the payments eventually defaulted.
This also had implications on the U.S. real-estate market. China’s inclination to save money and convert
it to American dollars offered low interest rates to the American real-estate market. America eagerly
acquired the loans offered by Chinese funds without ensuring that repayment was feasible. This was a
marriage that worked well for some time until Americans started to default on payments on loans
outside of their means. The market eventually crashed in the U.S. leaving the country in economic
jeopardy.
TESS. The only way the Chinese are different to us is they make sure they
have the money before they spend it.
(Kirkwood 108)
26
This shift not only denotes a new era of global economics, but also the dawning of a relationship
between Eastern and Western powers in which the West no longer dominates:
“What are the geopolitical implications of all this? One possibility is that it will speed up the
‘great reconvergence’ between East and West. If you go back to the very first ‘BRICs’ report
that Jim O’Neill and his colleagues at Goldman Sachs produced about the prospects for
Brazil, Russia, India and China, China was projected to overtake the United States in terms
of gross domestic product in 2040. But in more recent reports, that has been brought
forward to 2027” (Ferguson).
Martin Jacques suggests in his article for The Guardian that Westerners expect to be at the centre of
global evolution: “the reason for this tunnel vision is western hubris: a belief that our modernity is the
only conceivable one, that our political and cultural arrangements will ultimately be adopted by
everyone else” (Jacques). This “Western hubris” demands cultural and industrial superiority and as a
result underestimates the importance and power of the Chinese market.
TESS. China is not the drunk girl at the frat party. She’s the business major
with an A-plus average, and really great hair. She’s in charge of this brave
new economic world, you bend to her or you die trying.
(Kirkwood 108)
Ferguson points out that the theory of “Chimerica” results in a power shift in which China is increasingly
developed and capable to dominate the global economy. This economic dominance can translate to a
cultural dominance as well. China now has the clout to refuse the expectations of “Western hubris”, a
trend that is displayed colourfully throughout Kirkwood’s play. Shi Yinhong analyzes China’s modern-day
opinion of itself, highlighting that “this self-confidence has now developed in the context of the global
financial crisis, which has further dented the West's prestige and increased its dependence upon China”
(Yinhong).
ZHANG LIN. This country owns you. You don’t get to lecture us anymore.
(Kirkwood 24)
Scholars such as Ferguson and Jacques point out that the economic climate is changing in favour of the
East. Shifts in foreign policy and cultural understanding are sure to follow. However, Ferguson upholds
that “Chimerica” remains intact and that both the US and China each have significant influence: “it is
much too early to conclude that in geopolitical terms the American century is over, or that China solo is
about to take over from Chimerica” (Ferguson).
East vs. West in Chimerica
Ferguson and his economic theory partner, Moritz Schularick, wrote to The New York Times pointing out
that China has experienced a “transformation from third-world poverty to superpower status in less
27
than 15 years”. Kirkwood’s play examines this transformation, equating it to the discovery of a new
country and referencing an American equivalent:
JOE. Mel spoke with these women, they were earning like fifty dollars a
month, working fifteen-hour days, sleeping on the floor. . . I just, I felt so
guiltyZHANG LIN. Yes you’re right, we all blame you too. I think I read a book
once, about the Mayflower, crossing the Atlantic. Apparently this was
quite terrifying also. You’ve heard of this ship?
JOE. Yes, Zhang Lin, I have heard of the Mayflower. But they’re not
travelling to a whole new countryZHANG LIN. Of course they are. It just occupies the same part of the atlas
as the old one.
(Kirkwood 21)
Kirkwood expands on this idea of East versus West, contrasting the characters and their respective
countries in both industrial and cultural contexts. The play and its highly politicized and modernized
events show how different the East and West are while also examining how China and America are often
similar. There is indeed a marriage, a hybrid “Chimerica” in Kirkwood’s play, which exists both
industrially and culturally.
JOE. You should come to New York.
ZHANG LIN. What for? Starbucks? Cockroaches? I can get both of those
here.
(Kirkwood 24)
Dr. Robin Pharoah, anthropologist and market research agent specializing in the Chinese market, says
“today, I am often asked by Western businesses: ‘When will these traditions finally die out?’ Their
implication being: ‘When will the Chinese finally become like us?’” (Pharoah). Aligning with Martin
Jacques’ theory of “Western hubris”, Pharoah points out that the largest misconception is that China is
on its way to becoming America. His analysis mirrors that of the character Tess:
TESS. The road to the Chinese market is already well-trodden, and you
know what? It’s littered with the corpses of companies who blithely
assumed that Chinese consumers would bite off their hands for anything
America wanted to hawk to them. . .Because they believed China was
looking over the fence wanting to be America and nothing could be further
from the truth.
(Kirkwood 107)
28
Pharoah says that while plenty of Western brands and trends have been adopted in China, the root of
Chinese culture itself has not changed: “What if, to those hi-tech Chinese consumers, Western brands
are not cultural Trojan horses, but instead a new set of toys with which to play old games?” In his theory
Pharoah identifies the root of the East/West dichotomy: Westerners assume that China’s embracing of
Western brands means their embracing of Western culture.
JOE. God, tell me about it, it’s so depressing. Beijing’s so Westernised.
(Kirkwood 38)
According to Pharoah, this is not the case. Western culture’s “new set of toys” provides a commercial
face-lift for China’s customs, not a cultural overhaul. Westerners in the meantime still seem certain that
China will in fact evolve to be more like them, causing self-inflicted anxiety about America’s industrial
and economic standing.
MEL. Thousands of American jobs going overseas? Yeah people get a little
worked up!
(Kirkwood 76)
TESS. Sure. “What if the big boy comes and steals our sweets?” Maybe
they don’t want your sweets.
(Kirkwood 75)
Censorship in China
From Chimerica Practical Resource Pack prepared by Almeida Theatre Company (Trivett, et. al. 12):
In the UK [as well as in Canada], as a democratic country, we take our rights to freedom of speech for
granted. However, in China there are no such individual rights, and speech, books, music, films, the arts,
the press, radio, television and the Internet can be, and often are, censored by the government, the
Communist Party of China, if they contain objectionable, harmful, sensitive, or inconvenient
communication.
Notable censored subjects in China include, but are not limited to, democracy, the Tiananmen Square
protests of 1989, Maoism, Falun Gong, ethnic independence movements, corruption, police brutality,
anarchism, gossip, disparity of wealth, food safety, pornography, news sources that report on these
issues, religious content, and many websites. Chimerica deals with the ideas of censorship and
surveillance throughout, particularly in the recording of the history of Tiananmen Square. The event of
the massacre, as well as the picture of Tank Man, are well documented in the West, and many people
29
know the history of that event. However in China, this is not talked about, and certainly not taught in
schools.
FRANK. The girl on the advertising desk is 19 years old. She wasn’t born when
Tiananmen happened, most of her generation don’t know it happened, it’s been
erased from the history books, so when some lady calls up with a bunch of coded
messages about one of the worst fucking atrocities in her country’s history, the
girl doesn’t think anything but ‘how long til lunch?’. That’s the beauty of
censorship.
(Kirkwood 49)
Particularly pertinent in the play – and currently – is Internet censorship and surveillance. In China,
Internet censorship and surveillance are used as a means of controlling what people find out, and
government surveillance of the Internet means that even attempts to search for certain things could flag
you up to the authorities, meaning you are watched even when in your own home.
ZHANG LIN. You think an email like that from an American journalist does not get
seen by the censors? “Tank Man” in the subject line, Joe, in the subject line, are
you stupid or something?
(Kirkwood 67)
In the play, Lin’s article is only online for six hours before it is firewalled. Joe, on vacation, is prevented
from taking a picture of his hotel from the day of the 1989 massacre.
JOE takes up his camera, turns back towards the hotel, taking pictures. ZHANG
LIN looks, nervous, at a casually dressed MAN holding an umbrella as he wanders
closer.
ZHANG LIN. Joe.
JOE. Can’t believe they haven’t pulled it down yet. Every time I come back, I get
surprised it’s still here.
ZHANG LIN. Joe, put your camera away.
JOE goes to take a picture. The MAN opens his umbrella in front of JOE, obscuring
his shot. JOE looks at ZHANG LIN. Understands. He puts his camera down.
(Kirkwood 22-23)
Watch a real-world example of China’s “umbrella censorship” here.
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Banned novelist Ma Jian, who was present at the student protests of 1989, describes her findings upon
returning to Beijing 20 years after the massacre: “*Tiananmen+ seems now to be locked in the 20th
century, forgotten or ignored, as China continues to hurtle blindly towards its future. The amnesia to
which China has succumbed is not the result of natural memory-loss but of state-enforced erasure.”
(Jian).
During her visit with her son, Jian is followed by the authorities and her movements are constantly
monitored. Jian concludes her article with powerful words about the country she once called home:
“The authorities, for their part, may have a monopoly of the nation's resources, but they can never fully
control the nation's soul, and every day they live in terror that the intricate stack of lies they have
constructed will collapse” (Ma Jian). Read Ma Jian’s full story in her article for The Guardian here.
Pollution in China
One issue that Lucy Kirkwood incorporates is China’s extraordinary level of pollution. In Chimerica,
Zhang Lin, inspired partially by his neighbour’s deteriorating health, becomes an activist about this issue
and is even eventually detained as a result of his public criticism.
“Lin writes a blog entry about the pollution levels in the atmosphere, posting what he perceives as the
real levels rather than the party’s skewed results. In doing so, he knows that he will be reprimanded –
but he feels so strongly about it that he is willing to take the repercussions” (Resource Pack 14). The
following article from The New York Times offers a more in-depth understanding of the scope of the
problem as well as the Chinese government’s efforts to deny the severity.
Outrage Grows Over Air Pollution and China’s Response
By EDWARD WONG DEC. 6, 2011
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/07/world/asia/beijing-journal-anger-grows-over-air-pollution-inchina.html
BEIJING — The statement posted online along with a photograph of central Beijing muffled in a miasma
of brown haze did not mince words: “The end of the world is imminent.”
The ceaseless churning of factories and automobile engines in and around Beijing has led to this:
hundreds of flights canceled since Sunday because of smog, stores sold out of face masks, and many
Chinese complaining on the Internet that officials are failing to level with them about air quality or make
any improvements to the environment.
Chronic pollution in Beijing, temporarily scrubbed clean for the 2008 Summer Olympics, has made
people angry for a long time, but the disruptions it causes to daily life are now raising questions about
the economic cost, and the government’s ability to ensure the safety of the population.
“As a Chinese citizen, we have been kept in the dark on this issue for too long,” said Yu Ping, the father
of a 7-year-old boy, who has started a public campaign to demand that officials report more accurately
about Beijing’s air quality. “The government is just so bureaucratic that they don’t seem to care whether
we common people live or die. And it’s up to us, the common people, to prod them and to put pressure
on them so that they can reflect on their actions and realize that they really just have to do something.”
When the frustration of parents boils over, Communist Party leaders start worrying about their
legitimacy in the eyes of the people. That was the case in 2008 when parents vented anger over deadly
school collapses in the Sichuan earthquake and over adulterated milk.
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The motionless cloud of pollution that has smothered the capital and its surroundings in recent days has
frayed tempers. Long stretches of highway have been shut down because of low visibility, hobbling
transportation of people and goods. Workers at Capital International Airport have faced crowds of irate
travelers whose flights have been grounded. From Sunday to 11 a.m. Tuesday, more than 700 outbound
and inbound flights were canceled, one airport official said. A tour guide, Wang Lanhuizi, 23, clutched
dozens of passports from a stranded group. “I’m really worried, but there’s nothing we can do,” she
said.
An announcement at the airport made no mention of pollution, attributing the cancellations and delays
to “the weather condition.” That has long been the government line: the haze is fog, not fumes. But
increasingly, Chinese know better. People like Mr. Yu, a newspaper editor, are lobbying officials to stop
whitewashing their air quality reports.
Many people now follow a Twitter feed from the United States Embassy that gives hourly updates on air
quality; gauges on top of the embassy in central Beijing measure, among other things, the amount of
fine airborne particles, which are extremely damaging to the lungs. Since Sunday, the air has been rated
“very unhealthy” or “hazardous,” meaning that people should avoid any outdoor activity; on Sunday,
the particulate measurement exceeded the scale’s maximum of 500, a reading that the embassy once
called “crazy bad” on its @BeijingAir Twitter feed.
The fine particles, called PM 2.5 because they are 2.5 microns in diameter or smaller, make up much of
the pollution in the city, but they are not included in the air quality ratings issued by the Chinese
government. The published ratings take into account only a larger class of particles (up to 10 microns in
diameter) called PM 10. As a result, Beijing officials have announced good or excellent air quality nearly
80 percent of the time over the last two years, while the embassy’s assessment says the air was
unhealthy more than 80 percent of the time, according to an analysis by Steven Q. Andrews, an
American environmental consultant, that was published Monday on the Web site China Dialogue.
Experts say the filthy air shortens lives in the capital. One authoritative study “indicates that if Beijing’s
fine particulate concentration even reached the polluted levels of Los Angeles, life expectancy may
increase by over five years,” Mr. Andrews wrote.
The air readings from the embassy mysteriously stopped on Tuesday afternoon. “We’re checking on it,”
the embassy spokesman, Richard L. Buangan, said on Twitter. (Although Twitter is blocked in China, the
embassy’s air quality ratings are reposted by many Chinese on unblocked sites.)
In July 2009, a Chinese Foreign Ministry official, Wang Shu’ai, told American diplomats to halt the
embassy’s air quality Twitter feed, saying that the data “is not only confusing but also insulting,”
according to a State Department cable obtained by WikiLeaks. The embassy’s data, Mr. Wang said, could
lead to “social consequences.”
Chinese officials recently acknowledged that Beijing and other cities have the equipment to measure PM
2.5, the smaller particles, but do not reflect that data in their air quality ratings.
Prominent Beijing residents have called for changes. One is Pan Shiyi, a real estate magnate who asked
his seven million microblog followers last month to vote on whether the authorities should use a stricter
standard to assess air quality. Officials have not been helped by news reports that revealed that a
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Chinese manufacturer, the Broad Group, advertises that more than 200 of its pricey air purifiers are in
the offices and homes of China’s top leaders.
Ma Jun, an environmental advocate, said officials made some progress this year by committing to
ensuring that cities report PM 2.5 data starting in 2016. But that is too far away, he said.
Mr. Yu, the editor, is pushing for immediate disclosure of the data. His campaign has attracted attention
online this week as Beijing residents cough and squint in the haze. Mr. Yu said he filed an application to
the Beijing Environmental Protection Bureau last month to have the bureau release PM 2.5 data, and
was turned down; he posted the bureau’s answer on his microblog. He said he was considering suing the
bureau or asking the Ministry of Environmental Protection for a review. “With the government not being
totally open about this issue,” he said, “many people don’t realize how bad the situation is.”
On Tuesday, the English-language China Daily published an article under the headline “Exposure to Smog
Is Severe Hazard.” It said the lung cancer rate in Beijing had increased by 60 percent in the last decade
even though the smoking rate did not change.
Classroom Activities
The following practical activities are from Chimerica Practical Resource Pack prepared by Almeida
Theatre Company.
Heroes
One of the key themes within Chimerica is the notion of what defines a hero or heroic act? The play is
centred on a photograph of the Tank Man in Tiananmen Square, who stands up to the police and
physically places himself, as a target, in front of the tanks. He knows that this means that he might be
killed, but he believes so passionately in his cause that he does it anyway.
In the following practical drama exercise the class will explore different notions of heroism and what
it means to them.
1. Start by dividing your class into groups of three. In these groups ask them to discuss what
heroism means to them.
2. Ask them to think of particular situations, imaginary or real, in which someone acts heroically. It
can be a very small act or something much bigger. In their groups ask them to decide upon two
acts of heroism.
3. Now ask them to think about other people in these scenarios. Would all of the people involved
consider the act heroic? Ask them to think about a character from each scenario who would not
consider the act heroic and a reason why that might be.
4. Ask the group to decide which act they like the best; it could be one or a mixture of both.
5. Once all of the decisions have been made, ask the group to devise a short scene based on the
heroic scenario they have chosen. Rehearse and show back the pieces. Discuss after each piece
with the group:
•
What characteristics help you identify the hero in the piece?
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•
What was the heroic act?
•
Would everyone think that what the hero did was heroic? If not, why not?
Interpreting scenes using tableaux and photographs
TESS. What is this an image of? Protest, of course, but more than that, this is a
picture of the moment that China exchanged democracy for an economic
miracle. For the opportunity to work, live, spend, progress.
(Kirkwood 108)
There are three approaches to this exercise; the first part is an extension of the second, the third
provides further extension into creating characters and devising a performance. You might find the
preliminary exercise useful to link to existing study or curriculum topic:
Part 1
1. Ask the class to each select an image from a book, newspaper, magazine, online with more than
three people in the ‘scene’.
2. Consider the different images sources and how the tone of the picture changes from a
newspaper to a magazine, from journalism to entertainment. Discuss the differences.
3. Next, divide your class into small groups of 3-5 people.
4. Each group must now choose one of the images to work with as a group and nominate
themselves to represent each character in the scene.
Part 2 - Development
1. Either using the image above as a starting point or by creating a tableau, a frozen image, of your
own choosing, ask the group to stand up and form the scene from their image.
2. Consider the details of each character in the image: How are they standing? What are they
doing? What is their role in this image? Are the powerful or lowly (high or low status)?
3. Next, ask the group one at a time to create a headline, or a title, for the image. What do they
think is going on? And what does this headline tell the audience?
4. Discuss as a group how each person interprets the scene differently. How did the interpretations
change? Which did they like the most? What makes it more interesting?
Part 3 - Extension
1. Now encourage the group to bring their scenes to life, improvising the outcomes of these
scenes. Try to limit the scenes to just 1 minute at first, to really challenge the group to tell the
core of the story concisely.
2. If you have the time, you might want to use the character questionnaire (included below) to
help you to create a backstory for each character, which will enrich the scenes.
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3. After 10 minutes, or less if you are short for time, each group should take it in turns to show
their scene to the rest of the class.
4. Finally, some constructive feedback from the class will help the group to develop their scenes
further. If you have the time, why not use this scene as the starting point to devise a
performance? Would this be the opening or closing scene? What story can these characters tell
together?
CHARACTER QUESTIONNAIRE
Where does your character live?
Who does your character live with?
Where is your character from?
How old is your character?
Which time period is your character from?
What is your character called (think about their real name
and a nickname if it is different)?
What does your character look like?
How does your character stand, walk, sit?
Who else is in your character's life?
What kind of childhood did he or she have?
What does your character do for a living?
What is your character’s role in their community (do they
have power or status)?
How does your character deal with conflict and change?
What is your character most afraid of?
What is your character's goal or motivation in this story or
scene?
Diary Entries and Monologues
In the play there is some confusion about an advert that was placed in a Chinese newspaper which
read “To Wang Pengfei. The Unknown Hero of the Square”. The following extract from Scene 4.9
highlights the two different interpretations of this advert. Joe thinks that the ‘hero’ is the man in front
of the tank, but Pengsi tells us that the ‘hero’ is the man inside the tank.
Part 1
1. Read the extract below, either in pairs or aloud as a group.
2. Write a diary entry for each of the ‘heroes’ talking about how they felt in that moment; one
inside the tank, the other in front of the tank. This piece works well as a homework exercise to
then be developed in the classroom using the development activity in Part 2.
35
PENGSI. Please. My brother was...
JOE. Your brother was what?
JOE shakes him again.
Your brother was what?
PENGSI. Yes.
JOE. Yes what? The Tank Man?
PENGSI. Yes. Tank Man.
Pause. JOE releases PENGSI. Stumbles away. Holds his fist.
JOE. Is he...is he okay? Is Wang Pengfei alive?
PENGSI shakes his head, JOE shows him the Tank Man photo again.
JOE. Are you sure? Look. This man, you’re sure he’s not –
PENGSI. I don’t know about this man.
JOE. But you just said, he’s your brother.
PENGSI. No, not my brother this man.
JOE. But you just / said –
PENGSI. Not my brother, this man.
JOE. You’re not making sense!
PENGSI. The man...the tank...
JOE. (points) This man.
PENGSI. No. (he moves JOE’s finger) This man. Here. The soldier. In the tank, he
was my brother. Unknown hero, my brother.
(Kirkwood 113-4)
Part 2 - Development
Using the diary entries in Part 2, think about developing the writing as a monologue for performance.
Again, you might find the character questionnaire useful to build a strong identity for each of the
heroes.
Ask the class to think about the setting for their character:
•
Where are they when they perform their monologue?
36
•
How soon after the event is it?
•
How are they feeling?
•
What will happen next?
Part 3 - Extension
If you have time, you might find hot seating to be a useful technique.
Hot seating - You will need a single chair set up in the middle of a semi-circle.
The class will have an opportunity to ask questions to a character from the group. The aim is to help the
actor think deeply about character behaviours and motives that they might not have considered yet.
Start by asking the group to work in pairs to discuss a list of potential questions for the characters with
their partner, they may ask the same to all characters or think about a variety of questions.
This works best with an example from the teacher, so when the questions are prepared take the
'hotseat' and introduce yourself in character inviting questions from the audience. Be sure to remain in
character for the entire time spent in the 'hotseat'.
Once demonstrated, ask for a volunteer who is confident enough to sit in the 'hotseat' as the character
and field further questions. Set a time limit for both the character and the questioners, and if at any
point the character wants to stop the questioning, they may get up out of the chair.
Further Development Ideas
Why not try putting the hidden and non-typical characters in the 'hotseat', such as the father/mother of
a character, his/her child or his/her best friend? What do the reactions of these characters tell us about
the main character, or protagonist?
37
Works Cited (alphabetically)
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<http://www.caj.ca/ethics-guidelines/>.
"Interactive Tour." Tiananmen Square Tour. Long Bow Group, Inc., n.d. Web. 13 July 2015. <http://www.tsquare.tv/tour/>.
"Interview Jan Wong." PBS. PBS, 11 Apr. 2006. Web. 13 July 2015.
<http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/tankman/interviews/wong.html>.
"Interview John Pomfret." PBS. PBS, 11 Apr. 2006. Web. 13 July 2015.
<http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/tankman/interviews/pomfret.html>.
"Interview Orville Schell." PBS. PBS, 11 Apr. 2006. Web. 13 July 2015.
<http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/tankman/interviews/schell.html>.
"Interview Timothy Brook." PBS. PBS, 11 Apr. 2006. Web. 13 July 2015.
<http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/tankman/interviews/brook.html>.
"Li Peng Holds Dialogue with Students." Chronology. Long Bow Group, Inc., n.d. Web. 13 July 2015.
<http://www.tsquare.tv/chronology/May18mtg.html>.
"Li Peng Speech Declares Martial Law." Li Peng Speech Declares Martial Law. Long Bow Group, Inc., n.d. Web. 13 July 2015.
<http://www.tsquare.tv/chronology/MartialLaw.html>.
"NPPA Code of Ethics." National Press Photographers Association. National Press Photographers Association, n.d. Web. 13 July 2015.
<https://nppa.org/code_of_ethics>.
"SPJ Code of Ethics." Society of Professional Journalists. Society of Professional Journalists, 06 Sept. 2014. Web. 13 July 2015.
<http://www.spj.org/ethicscode.asp>.
"The Memory of Tiananmen 1989." PBS. PBS, 11 Apr. 2006. Web. 13 July 2015. <http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/tankman/cron/>.
"The Tiananmen Papers." PBS. PBS, 11 Apr. 2006. Web. 13 July 2015. <http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/tankman/cron/papers.html>.
“Team.” Clean Break. Web. 20 July 2015. <http://www.cleanbreak.org.uk/team>.
Apsalus. “BBC's James Reynolds censored by CCP tactical umbrella forces at Tiananmen Square.” Online video clip. Youtube. Youtube, 4 June
2009. Web. 13 July 2015. <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wNXv7QX3Ue8>.
Burkholder, Carolynne. "Online Journalism Ethics: Photojournalism."Journalism Ethics. School of Journalism & Mass Communication: University
of Wisconsin-Madison, 2009. Web. 13 July 2015. <http://journalismethics.info/online_journalism_ethics/photojournalism.htm>.
Danchev, Alex. "A Photograph Is Not an Opinion." Headlong. Headlong Theatre, 20 May 2013. Web. 13 July 2015.
<http://headlong.co.uk/ideas/photograph-not-opinion/>.
Ferguson, Niall, and Moritz Schularick. "The Great Wallop." The New York Times. The New York Times, 15 Nov. 2009. Web. 13 July 2015.
<http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/16/opinion/16ferguson.html?pagewanted=all&_r=1&>.
Ferguson, Niall. "What 'Chimerica' Hath Wrought." The American Interest. The American Interest, 01 Jan. 2007. Web. 13 July 2015.
<http://www.the-american-interest.com/2009/01/01/what-chimerica-hath-wrought/>.
Jacques, Martin. "Welcome to China's Millennium." The Guardian. The Guardian, 23 June 2009. Web. 13 July 2015.
<http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2009/jun/23/china-martin-jacques-economics >.
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Jones, Alice. "Lucy Kirkwood: Britain's Brightest Young Stage Writer." The Independent. Independent Digital News and Media, 27 Oct. 2009.
Web. 13 July 2015. <http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/theatre-dance/features/lucy-kirkwood-britains-brightestyoung-stage-writer-1809848.html>.
Jones, Terril. "Tank Man." PCM Online. Pomona College Magazine, 2008. Web. 13 July 2015.
<http://www.pomona.edu/magazine/PCMfl09/FStankman.shtml>.
Kirkwood, Lucy. Chimerica. London: Nick Hern, 2013. Print.
Mackay, Mairi. "Don McCullin's War with Guilt." CNN. Cable News Network, 11 Oct. 2011. Web. 13 July 2015.
<http://www.cnn.com/2011/10/08/world/europe/don-mccullin-war-photography/index.html>.
Newton, Julianne H. "Photojournalism Ethics: A 31st-Century Primal Dance of Behavior, Technology, and Ideology." The Handbook of Mass
Media Ethics. Ed. Lee Wilkins and Clifford G. Christians. New York: Routledge, 2009. 84-100. Google Books. Web. 13 July 2015.
<https://books.google.ca/books?hl=en&lr=&id=ZJGOAgAAQBAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PA84&dq=ethics+of+photojournalism&ots=5zjz3j0q5
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Pharoah, Robin, Dr. "In Search of China's Riches." Headlong. Headlong Theatre, 12 Aug. 2013. Web. 13 July 2015.
<http://headlong.co.uk/ideas/search-chinas-riches/>.
Rodriguez Herrera, Daniel. “1989 Tiananmen Square Protests.” Online video clip. Youtube. Youtube, 17 Sept. 2005. Web. 13 July 2015.
<https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9-nXT8lSnPQ>.
Sontag, Susan. "Regarding the Pain of Others: A Commentary." Diogene. Vol. 1. New York: Presses Universitaires De France, 2003. 127-39. Ser.
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Trivett, EJ, Samantha Lane, Charlie Payne, Sarah Tarry, & Boris Witzenfeld. Almeida Projects Chimerica Practical Resource Pack. May 2013. Web.
20 July 2015. <https://headlong.co.uk/media/media/downloads/Chimerica_Resource_Pack.pdf.Chimerica>
Westbrook, Dillon. "A Brief History of Photojournalism." Photography Schools. Photography School and Photography Career Information Guide,
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Witty, Patrick. "Behind the Scenes: Tank Man of Tiananmen." New York Times: Lens. New York Times, 03 June 2009. Web. 13 July 2015.
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Wong, Edward. "Outrage Grows Over Air Pollution and China’s Response."The New York Times. The New York Times, 06 Dec. 2011. Web. 13 July
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Yinhong, Shi. "What Does the New China Think of Itself?" The Guardian. The Guardian, 24 June 2009. Web. 13 July 2015.
<http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2009/jun/24/china>.
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This Study Guide was created and compiled by:
Erin Schachter, Education & Audience Development Manager
Victoria Fraser, Producing Intern
Emily St-Aubin, Education Intern
Thank you to Almeida Theatre Company for sharing your resources.
Educator Outreach Program Sponsor:
Canadian Stage Educator Advisory Committee, 2015.2016
Please feel free to contact me or an Advisor from your own board to discuss productions and
further education opportunities at Canadian Stage.
Erin Schachter
Alicia Roberge
Christine Jackson
Janet O’Neill
Jennifer Burak
Julian Richings
Laurence Siegel
Lisa Kapp
Melissa Farmer
Michael Limerick
Sally Spofforth
[email protected]
Marc Garneau, TDSB
TDSB
TDSB
Arts Educator
Arts Education Consultant
Arts Education Consultant
Appleby College, CIS
Branksome Hall, CIS
Monarch Park, TDSB
Marc Garneau, TDSB
[email protected]
Janet.O'[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
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