| Learn from Dashan! |
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An evening with Mark Rowswell The Mix at Mesa Thursday, November 19th, 7pm (talk starts at 7.30pm) As US President Barack Obama visits China, Shanghai’s World Expo approaches and Beijing steps up efforts to communicate with the outside world, the question of how China and the West perceive each other is increasingly important. Mark Rowswell is uniquely placed to comment. Often described as “China’s most famous foreigner,” Rowswell -- better known by his stage name “Dashan” -- has spent two decades in China as a performer, television host and cultural ambassador. He will talk about how, almost by accident, he found himself on the frontline of China’s culture wars, his current work as Canada’s commissioner general to Expo 2010, and why China and the West sometimes struggle to understand each other. Venue details: The Mix, 1/F, Mesa, 748 Julu Lu, near Fumin Lu (6289 9108) Admission: Members free; Non-members 50 RMB RSVP: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it About the Speaker: Born and raised in Canada, Mark Rowswell began studying Chinese in the mid 1980s, first at the University of Toronto and later at Beijing University. While in Beijing, he became interested in Chinese performing arts, particularly xiangsheng, a popular form of comic dialogue. A chance opportunity to appear on television suddenly gave Rowswell national exposure under the stage name "Dashan," and repeated appearances on programmes with audiences in the hundreds of millions eventually turned him into a household name across China. Over 20 years, Mark Rowswell has hosted educational programmes, performed in dramas and commented frequently in the Chinese media. He was Canada’s cultural attache to the Beijing Olympics and was recently named Canada’s Expo commissioner general. Rowswell has been awarded Canada's highest civilian honour, the Order of Canada. For more information see: http://www.dashan.com/en/index.htm |