Kim Hunter Gordon's Report

With the generous assistance of the Santander Travel Award I was able to travel to two academic conferences this year, presenting my research to a number of scholars from all around the world.

The first of these two conferences was the Association for Asian Studies in Seattle. The panel I was part of was entitled 'Xiqu at the Margin: How "Chinese" is Chinese Opera?' and contributing a paper on 'Xiqu in London'. My paper was well received and the ensuing discussion gave me a lot to think about in terms of future research. On the sides of the AAS conference, I was also able to attend the Chinoperl annual gathering, a great networking opportunity for me at which I sung a piece of Kunqu.

The second was the European Association of Chinese Studies annual conference in St Petersburg in August to present m ypaper on 'Choreographic precision and the changing tradition in contemporary Kunqu'. I was lucky in that the panel on which I was placed allowed to have an in-depth discussion with Prof. Catherine Yeh from Boston University whose research into Peking Opera had many parallels with my own work.

Presenting at these events has been an important step in my academic career, allowing me to share some of my research, become involved in wider academic networks related to my field and establish connections that may lead to opportunities beyond my graduation. I am deeply grateful to the Santander Award for this opportunity.