Southeast Asian Performance, Ethnic Identity and China’s Soft Power

点击翻译按钮获取中文摘要

This project aims to address the reception of China's state-funded cultural diplomacy initiatives among Overseas Chinese communities in multicultural societies. Using performance observation, interviews and analysis of archival sources, it will assess how Sino-Southeast Asian communities react to local and transnational pressures and stimuli as the Chinese state invests in soft power, of which cultural diplomacy is a vital element. Expected outcomes include new knowledge about how and why culture in diaspora changes in response to regional and domestic geopolitics, and a more robust understanding of how China's state-led soft power initiatives function beyond the economic sphere.