SPEAKERS SPEAKERS SPEAKERS
DR. AKO MASHINO
Lecturer, Tokyo University of Arts
Biography
Dr. Ako Mashino acquired a BA in 1991 and an MA in 1996 from Tokyo University of Arts. She earned her doctoral degree (PhD) from Ochanomizu University, Japan, in 2002. She currently teaches ethnomusicology, Balinese gamelan, and other courses at several universities, including Tokyo University of Arts, Meiji University, and Kunitachi College of Music in Tokyo. She is the editor of an anthology titled Minzokuongakugaku juuni no shiten (2016) (12 Perspectives of Ethnomusicology) and has written several articles and papers in both Japanese and English. She is also an active performer of Balinese gamelan gong kebyar, gender wayang, and geguntangan.
PROFESSOR EMERITA DR. KATHY FOLEY
Adjunct Professor (2023), Sultan Idris Education University
Biography
Kathy Foley is a Research Professor and Distinguished Professor Emerita of Performance, Play and Design at UCSC, an Adjunct at UPSI (2023), and past President of UNIMA-USA. She is past editor of Asian Theatre Journal (2005-2018) and guest editor of UNIMA-USA’s Puppetry Research International (2023). She is one of the first non-Indonesian dalang to perform in the Indonesia National Wayang Festival. Her exhibits have been shown at the National Geographic Gallery (Washington, DC), East-West Center Gallery (Honolulu) and other venues. Her research and performance have been supported by Fulbright, Asian Cultural Council, Institute of Sacred Music/Yale, East-West Center and University of California (Arts Research Institute, Committee on Research, Porter College, Dickson Fellowship) and other grants.
Dr. NORAMIN FARID
Adjunct Lecturer, University of the Arts Singapore
Biography
Dr. Noramin Farid is a choreographer, arts educator, and maritime Southeast Asian performing arts researcher. A recipient of the 2017 Singapore Youth Award and the 2018 India-ASEAN Youth Awards, Amin is the curator of an online portal, ARKITARI, which documents maritime Southeast Asian dances. He is also the current president of a dance organisation, DIAN Dancers, and the founding member of Arki-Gen, a group focused on promoting discourse and research about Southeast Asian performing arts. He holds a PhD in Theatre, Drama and Dance Studies from Royal Holloway, University of London, UK. Amin currently teaches Southeast Asian Performing Arts & Cultures at Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts (NAFA), Lasalle College of the Arts, and Singapore Raffles Music College (SRMC).
DR. MARLENNY DEENERWAN
Senior Lecturer, Faculty of Creative Arts, Universiti Malaya
Biography
Marlenny Deenerwan holds a PhD in Theatre Performance from Monash University, Australia (2016); a Master of Arts (2011) and Bachelor of Performing Arts in Drama (2007) from Universiti Malaya; and a Diploma in Creative Writing from the National Arts Academy, now known as ASWARA (2002). Her research spans the field of Malaysian traditional and ritual theatre as well as Bangsawan, and is currently focused on the development of DraFDidik, a model of interactive theatre as an alternative teaching and learning method for young children. She is currently a Senior Lecturer in the Faculty of Creative Arts, Universiti Malaya.
DR. MAS RYNNA WATI AHMAD
Senior Lecturer, Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia
Biography
Dr. Mas Rynna Wati Ahmad is a senior lecturer at the Centre for Research in Malay Language, Literature and Culture in the Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia. Her research focuses on comparative literary studies in Malay translated works, specifically on drama and theatre. She is currently writing papers on the elements of cultural perspectives in Modern Malay eclectic performances. She read English Literature at university but decided to focus on English and Malay works for her doctorate. She received her PhD from Universiti Putra Malaysia, and her thesis was about comparative philosophy in Malay translated existential dramas.
DR. PATRICIA ANN HARDWICK
Senior Lecturer, Faculty of Music and Performing Arts, Sultan Idris Education University
Biography
Patricia Ann Hardwick is a Senior Lecturer in the Faculty of Music and Performing Arts, Sultan Idris Education University. She holds a dual PhD in Folklore & Ethnomusicology and Anthropology from Indiana University, Bloomington. Her research has been published in Asian Ethnology, JMBRAS, Folklore Forum, Midwestern Folklore and Music and Medicine. Her research has been supported by the Institute of Sacred Music (Yale), Fulbright (MACEE 2003-2004, AMINEF 2018-2019), AIFIS and the Jacob K. Javits Fellowship Program (U.S. Department of Education). Dr. Hardwick’s current research interests include intangible cultural heritage, digital humanities, archiving and cultural sustainability. Currently she is leading a Fundamental Research Grant Scheme (FRGS) project funded by the Malaysian Ministry of Higher Education titled Sustaining Sustainability - Fundamental Research Strategies of Resilience and Adaptive Management in Malaysian Performing Arts.
PROFESSOR MATTHEW CONSTANCIO MAGLANA SANTAMARIA
Professor, University of The Philippines Diliman
Biography
MCM (Matthew Constancio Maglana) Santamaria is Professor of Asian and Philippine Studies at the Asian Center, University of the Philippines Diliman. He received his Doctor of Law in Political Science from the Kyoto University Graduate School of Law in 1999. He is currently Assistant Dean for Cultural Affairs of the Asian Center. He has published many book chapters, articles and essays on the themes of ethnic conflict, Sama-Bajau ethnography, ritual and performance, and dance studies. He is also a renowned theater choreographer who pursues his advocacy in helping sustain Sama-Bajau traditional music and dance through the Bunga Arts Link (BAL), a performance group which he established in 2004.
DR. ‘TOSIN KOOSHIMA TUME
Head of the Theatre and Media Arts Department, Federal University Oye-Ekiti (FUOYE), Nigeria
Biography
Dr. ‘Tosin Kooshima Tume is the current head of the Theatre and Media Arts department, Federal University Oye-Ekiti (FUOYE) in Nigeria and a Research Fellow with the Arts of Africa and Global Souths research programme, Rhodes University, Grahamstown, South Africa. She is an award-winning playwright, performing artiste, theatre creator, and scholar. Her research interests include African festivals and theatre, feminist identities in African literature and performances, pop culture and social media representations, play adaptations, and trends in African music and practice.
ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR DR. ÖNDER ÇAKIRTAŞ
Associate Professor, Bingöl University, Turkiye
Biography
Dr. Önder Çakırtaş, an Associate Professor in the Department of English Language and Literature at Bingöl University, Turkiye, specializes in Modern and Contemporary British Drama and Literature, particularly in Political Theatre, Minority Theatre, Ethnic Theatre, Race-Oriented Theatre and Disability Theatre. He is currently under contract with Routledge to write a book titled Staging Muslims in Britain: Playwriting, Performance, and Representation. He is the author of the book Ten ve Kimlik: Çağdaş Siyahi İngiiliz Tiyatrosu [Skin Colur and Identity: Contemporary Black British Theatre], which was published in 2020. Dr. Çakırtaş is founding editor of Essence & Critique: Journal of Literature and Drama Studies and is an editorial member of Performing Ethos: International Journal of Ethics in Theatre & Performance.
ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR DR. LANLAN KUANG
Philosophy Department, University of Central Florida
Biography
Dr. Lanlan Kuang is an Associate Professor at the University of Central Florida’s Philosophy Department. Specializing in Asian humanities, aesthetics, and heritage studies, her research focuses on China’s media and cultural policies and their impacts on the country’s socioeconomic developments. She is the Chair of the Florida Folklife Council for the Florida Department of State; a Visiting Research Fellow at the world-renowned Dunhuang Academy; and a Center for Ethnic and Folk Literature and Arts Distinguished Fellow appointed by China's Ministry of Culture and Tourism for her contributions to safeguarding folk arts and heritage culture. Dr. Kuang holds a Ph.D. in Folklore and Ethnomusicology from Indiana University, Bloomington and was on a Fulbright in China in 2008-2009. Kuang’s new monograph on heritage management and Silk Road expressive arts is scheduled to be released by Indiana University Press in 2024.
ASSISTANT PROFESSOR DR. “CHI” SUWICHAN PHATTHANAPHRAIWAN
Bodhivijjalaya College, Srinakharinwirot University, Thailand
Biography
"Chi" Suwichan Phatthanaphraiwan is assistant professor of Geo-Cultural Management at Bodhivijjalaya College, Srinakharinwirot University. He has published two books on Pgaz k'Nyau music (Rao Khue Tehnaku and Phleng Tong Haam Khong Pgaz k'Nyau), is vice president of the Foundation for Culture and Environment (FCESA), and co-founded the Karen Community Ecomuseum.
DR. DESIREE A. QUINTERO
Lecturer, Leeward Community College, University of Hawai’i, Oahu, USA
