永远别放弃对人生的想象：在希腊获得博士学位的这一天 Never Give Up on Imagining Your Life: The Day I Received My Ph.D. in Greece

再一次站在Vouleftikon里，我的确是百感交集。上一次站在这里，还是在读硕士的时候，为当地市民做中国文化讲座。再之前，还在这里见证了尤金尼奥·巴尔巴在这里被授予伯罗奔尼撒大学荣誉博士。这座曾经是希腊独立之后共和国第一个议会大厦的清真寺，的确是一个特别的地方。

今天，我在这里将被授予博士学位。若是回到多年之前，我无法想象自己有一天竟然还会读博士，而且还读完了。正如之前读硕士，也是在工作十年之后，甚至还是距离比较大的跨界。所以，这也印证了我一直以来的习惯，不做超过一年的计划，因为事情的发展永远会超出彼时彼刻的想象。

回头来看，一切都不是必然。我不是必然要走上戏剧之路，也不是必然会读博士，更不是必然会当老师……其实现在走的路是很随机的，是无数偶然影响下才凑巧这样了。

若是当初Epidaurus Lyceum没有通过我的申请，我就不会学戏剧（当初也就是在Georgina的一念之间，可见多么应该对每一个人都宽容友好一些，或许就能给他/她一个改变一生的机会）；若是当初没有努力并且大胆地去申请，我就不会成为伯罗奔尼撒大学戏剧系第一个外国学生；若是当初没有碰到疫情，或许我就不会进入学校当戏剧老师；若是当初在参加会议的时候没有多一句嘴问了一下Maria是否愿意接受我当她的博士，我应该就不会读博士了……

所以那句话真的是对的，一切皆有可能。永远不要放弃对人生的想象，若是早早就按部就班波澜不惊，那真是对宝贵人生的浪费。

有很多人很惊讶于我从事戏剧教育的时间这么短，怎么就能在这几年里做了那么多事情，竟然在学校里建起了一个戏剧学科，还搭起了一个戏剧教师团队。或许几个原因吧：

• 我在希腊这个戏剧起源地的学习，是一切的根本。说实话，在希腊和国内，我看到的戏剧是不一样的，差别非常大，无论是从戏剧的内容、形式，剧场或是观众，没有深入其中看过不会知道到底有多大不同。我也就理解了为什么之前学校里的戏剧教育会是那样的一种样态，为什么会做不起来。除了对戏剧的理解，还有对教育戏剧的专业学习。说实话，国内真正懂教育戏剧的人并不多，毕竟在前些年高校里是没有这个专业的，要学习教育戏剧，得花时间去国外读，除了一些年轻人，有多少人去读过呢。但是教育戏剧，不深入学习，很难真正掌握。我的硕博都是学习研究教育戏剧，这也是我为什么可以在学校里这么快将戏剧课程落地的最根本原因。
  
  

• 我在学校里做戏剧教育，会有大量突破常规的做法，从我们的课程、活动等就可以看出来。我们的课程里是真正坚持了学生为主体，我们的活动里是真正坚持了所有内容来自于课程。我们策划的活动已经超出了传统校园活动的概念和框架，即便放到社会上也是高质量的。这得益于我过去在跨国企业以及自己创业的时候做过很多国际交流项目和活动的经验，而这些经验如果是一直在学校里工作的老师是很难有的。像我们最近在麓镇做的演出，合作方就盛赞我们团队的专业性完全不输外面的专业演出团队。戏剧作为学校的新学科，就必须要以非常规的方式去落地，而这对引领者有很高的要求。
  
  

• 除了上面两点，能在学校里这么快地将戏剧这个学科建起来，也是一种机缘。我们常说，戏剧教育在学校里要落地，校长是关键。校长最大的支持，其实就是不干涉给空间，在关键的时候又能力挺。我们的校长的确是如此做的。但是，我们也听说了很多不太好的例子，如果一定要校长自己理解了老师才可以去做，如果老师做的时候校长一定要去管，那戏剧在那个学校八成是没戏。
  
  

• 还有可能的一点，就是埋头去做。有人跟我们说，你们做得那么好应该要多推广。我的回答是，还是低调地踏踏实实做好。这些年，我们每天都很忙碌，我甚至有过几个月一天休息都没有。千万别误会我是工作狂，真的不是，从当年我去丹麦工作两年之后，我早就“戒”掉了工作狂。我非常重视生活质量，而现在可以说是真正将喜欢的事和工作合二为一了，才导致在很多人看来我好像一直在忙工作。但实际上，我是在做自己喜欢的事，这就无所谓工作还是爱好了。说实话，戏剧教育这条路很难，如果仅仅当一份工作，八成也是没戏的。

在这次来希腊之前，我又一次收到一位老师发给我的一封长长的信。对于对戏剧教育充满热爱，并且上进踏实的老师，我一向是非常愿意去支持的。所以尽管期末非常忙，我还是约了她一起聊。她跟我说沟通之后非常开心，解开了很多困惑。谁知道以后会发生什么呢，或许她从这一次谈话开始，人生也发生了变化呢。

在完成博士论文的过程中，特别艰难的时候，会偷偷幻想完成论文答辩拿到博士学位的时候该有多开心。感觉人生就无憾了。但是走到这一步，却出乎意料的平静，接下来要走的路希望会更精彩一些。

当与其他三位博士站在一起宣誓，当我向在场所有人讲话，当身边不时有人跟我说Συγχαρητήρια（祝贺），我感受到自己获得了新的力量，让自己更年轻更有活力更有创造力的力量。

所以，永远别放弃对人生的想象。

Never Give Up on Imagining Your Life: The Day I Received My Ph.D. in Greece

Standing in Vouleftikon once again, I am truly filled with a myriad of emotions. The last time I stood here was during my Master’s studies, delivering a lecture on Chinese culture for local citizens. Before that, I also witnessed Eugenio Barba being awarded an honorary doctorate from the University of the Peloponnese here. This mosque, which once served as the first parliament building of the independent Greek republic, is indeed a very special place.

Today, I will be awarded my Ph.D. here. Thinking back many years ago, I could never have imagined that I would one day pursue a doctorate, let alone finish it. Just like pursuing my Master’s degree, which came after ten years of working and involved a significant career pivot. Therefore, this also validates my long-standing habit: never make plans that stretch beyond a year, because the course of events will always surpass whatever you can imagine at the time.

Looking back, nothing was inevitable. I wasn't bound to take the path of drama, I wasn't bound to pursue a Ph.D., and I certainly wasn't bound to become a teacher... In fact, the path I am walking now is quite random, coming together by sheer coincidence under the influence of countless contingencies.

If the Epidaurus Lyceum hadn't accepted my application back then, I wouldn't have studied drama (it all hung on a single passing thought of Georgina's—showing how important it is to be tolerant and friendly to everyone, as it might just give someone a life-changing opportunity); if I hadn't worked hard and boldly applied, I wouldn't have become the first international student in the Department of Theatre at the University of the Peloponnese; if the pandemic hadn't happened, perhaps I wouldn't have entered a school to become a drama teacher; if I hadn't spoken up at a conference to ask Maria if she would be willing to take me on as her doctoral student, I probably wouldn't be pursuing a Ph.D. at all...

So that saying is truly right: anything is possible. Never give up on imagining your life; settling down too early into a predictable, uneventful routine is truly a waste of a precious life.

Many people are amazed that, having spent such a short time in drama education, I've managed to accomplish so much in just these few years—building a drama discipline from scratch within a school and even assembling a team of drama teachers. There are perhaps several reasons for this:

My studies in Greece, the cradle of theatre, are the foundation of everything. To be honest, the theatre I've seen in Greece and back home are different—the differences are immense, whether in terms of content, form, theatre spaces, or audiences. Unless you immerse yourself in it, you wouldn't know how stark the contrast is. That helped me understand why school-based drama education used to look the way it did, and why it struggled to take off. Beyond an understanding of theatre, there is also the professional study of Drama in Education. To be frank, true experts in Drama in Education are rare back home; after all, universities didn't offer this major in past years. To study it, one had to spend time abroad. Aside from a few young people, how many have actually done so? Yet Drama in Education is hard to truly master without deep, immersive study. Both my Master's and Ph.D. studies focused on Drama in Education, which is the most fundamental reason why I was able to implement drama curricula so rapidly in the school.

In implementing drama education at school, I adopted many unconventional practices, which can be seen clearly in our curricula and activities. Our courses genuinely uphold the student-centered approach, and our activities strictly ensure that all content stems directly from the curriculum. The events we design go beyond the concepts and frameworks of traditional campus activities; even when placed in the broader public sphere, they are of high quality. This stems from my past experience managing numerous international exchange projects and events while working in multinational corporations and running my own startup—experience that is difficult for teachers who have spent their entire careers solely in schools to acquire. For instance, regarding our recent performance in Luxehaven, our partners highly praised our team, noting that our professionalism was entirely on par with external professional theatre troupes. As a new academic discipline in schools, drama must be established through unconventional methods, which places high demands on its leaders.

Beyond the first two points, being able to build up the drama discipline so quickly at school was also a matter of serendipity. We often say that for drama education to take root in a school, the principal is key. A principal's greatest support is actually non-interference—giving space—while stepping up to back you during critical moments. Our principal has indeed done precisely that. However, we have also heard of many unfortunate cases: if a principal insists on fully understanding everything before letting teachers try, or if they micro-manage every step the teachers take, then drama in that school is most likely doomed.

Another possible factor is simply keeping our heads down and getting to work. Some people have told us, "You're doing so well, you should promote yourselves more." My reply is to keep a low profile and focus on doing the work solidly. Over the years, we have been busy every single day; I've even had periods lasting several months without a single day off. Please don't misunderstand me as a workaholic—I'm really not. Ever since I worked in Denmark for two years back then, I long ago "kicked" workaholism. I place a high value on quality of life, and what's happening now is that I've truly merged what I love with my work, which makes it look to many like I'm constantly busy working. In reality, I am just doing what I love, so the distinction between work and hobby no longer matters. To be honest, the path of drama education is extremely difficult; if treated merely as a job, it is bound to fail.

Before coming to Greece this trip, I received another long letter from a teacher. I am always more than willing to support teachers who are passionate about drama education, motivated, and grounded. So despite being extremely busy with final exams, I still made time to chat with her. She told me afterward how happy she was and how many of her confusions had been cleared up. Who knows what the future holds? Perhaps starting from this very conversation, her life will undergo a transformation too.

During the process of writing my doctoral dissertation, at times when it was particularly arduous, I would secretly daydream about how happy I would feel once I finished my defense and received the Ph.D. It felt like my life would have no regrets. But now that I've reached this step, I feel unexpectedly calm. I hope the path ahead will be even more splendid.

Standing together with three other doctoral graduates to take the oath, speaking to everyone present, and hearing people occasionally say "Συγχαρητήρια" (Congratulations) around me, I felt that I had gained a new kind of strength—a strength that makes me feel younger, more vibrant, and more creative.

Therefore, never give up on imagining your life.