EASC Guest Speaker Series: Two Hours with Chinese Kunqu Opera: A Cultural Encounter

Friday, November 21, 2025 | 10:30AM-12:30PM | DML 240 

EASC Guest Speaker Series: Talk by Dr. Fang Wei with Faculty Moderator Dr. Wanmeng Li (EALC 110: East Asian Humanities: The Great Tradition)

Please join us for a performance and guest lecture by Dr. Fang Wei and her team from the Kunqu Opera Society USA! Dr. Fang and her team of artists are professional performers of Chinese Kunqu and Yue opera, two essential genres that are fundamental to the theatre tradition in East Asia. This special event offers a unique opportunity to learn about this rich artistic heritage in an immersive and interactive way. Dr. Fang and her team will present a live performance of selections from two classic Kunqu pieces, accompanied by an introduction to the tradition.

The performance will feature excerpts from The Peony Pavilion (牡丹亭), a celebrated romantic tragicomedy written by Tang Xianzu that depicts a love story overcoming the boundary between life and death. The program will also include Longing for the Secular World (思凡), a famous solo piece that tells the story of a young nun who, weary of monastic austerity, escapes her convent to pursue worldly life.

This event is co-sponsored by the USC East Asian Library.