The most remarkable phenomenon in Asia in the 21st century is arguably the economic rise of China and India. Amazingly, the two most populous countries in the world are uplifting millions of their citizens annually from poverty through rapid economic growth. What is the impact on the region, given the ascendance of China and India? There are at least two possible outcomes: the rise of the two great Asian powers may challenge the US and instill fear among the smaller countries in Asia, or, China and India will act as new economic dynamos that will benefit the region even if US economic presence in the region is to decline in the future. This book explores the opportunities and obstacles to a “harmonious” region underpinned by the rise of China and India.

The first ever comprehensive collection of plays in English from Southeast Asia. Features work by eight playwrights from seven countries in Southeast Asia, a region which is experiencing profound change: Singapore, Vietnam, Malaysia, Thailand, the Philippines, Indonesia and Cambodia. Southeast Asian Plays explores the rich variety of dramatic work that is only beginning to be translated into English. Theatre scripts are merely blueprints for productions, especially in this region. As elsewhere, second productions and revivals are rare, so publication is key to allowing play texts to find a wider international readership. Topics include the global financial crisis, sex workers, traditional v modern values, the role of faith in society, corruption in high places and journalistic ethics. The plays have been selected for performance. Plays: The Plunge by Jean Tay (Singapore) about the efects of a financial crisis An Evening At the Opera by Floy Quintos (Philippines) about a dictator and his wife Night of the Minotaur by Tew Bunnag (Thailand) about a man misused as a monster Tarap Man by Ann Lee (Malaysia) about a man wrongly imprisoned under the justice system Dark Race by Dang Chuong (Vietnam) about corruption in high places Frangipani by Chhon Sina (Cambodia) about the sex trade in Cambodia Piknic by Joned Suryatmoko (Indonesia) about the need to get rich quick in Bali Nadirah by Alfian Saat (Singapore) about the conflict between faith and morality "The editors have done an excellent job of opening up our chances of reading and learning about plays from all over Southeast Asia. ...editorial choices are significant for opening up spaces to voices which are otherwise heard less often. All in all the plays are interesting for the ways in which they grapple with key concerns in their respective societies." --The Asiatic

ASEAN countries play a crucial role in the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) that was initiated in 2013. A number of priority BRI projects have since been implemented. The implementation of BRI brings new opportunities and challenges to countries in the region, and also to regional integration.In this book, researchers from universities and think-tanks in ASEAN countries study the BRI from the perspective of regional studies. It presents an analysis of responses on BRI of the government and people from individual ASEAN members.The book addresses three areas: First, the strengths and weaknesses of ASEAN countries, and the opportunities and challenges for them in implementing the BRI (a SWOT analysis); second, the impacts of BRI on building the ASEAN community; and third, interactions between BRI and ASEAN-China cooperation.

The contributors analyse the subject of Asian pop culture arranged under three headings: 'Television Industry in East Asia', 'Transnational-Crosscultural Receptions of TV Dramas' and 'Nationalistic reactions'.

The Methuen Drama Handbook of Interculturalism and Performance explores ground-breaking new directions and critical discourse in the field of intercultural theatre and performance while surveying key debates concerning interculturalism as an aesthetic and ethical series of encounters in theatre and performance from the 1960s onwards. The handbook's global coverage challenges understandings of intercultural theatre and performance that continue to prioritise case studies emerging primarily from the West and executed by elite artists. By building on a growing field of scholarship on intercultural theatre and performance that examines minoritarian and grassroots work, the volume offers an alternative and multi-vocal view of what interculturalism might offer as a theoretical keyword to the future of theatre and performance studies, while also contributing an energized reassessment of the vociferous debates that have long accompanied its critical and practical usage in a performance context. By exploring anew what happens when interculturalism and performance intersect as embodied practice, The Methuen Drama Handbook of Interculturalism and Performance offers new perspectives on a seminal theoretical concept still as useful as it is controversial. Featuring a series of indispensable research tools, including a fully annotated bibliography, this is the essential scholarly handbook for anyone working in intercultural theatre and performance, and performance studies.