Beatrice & Feminism
Comedy, exhibition, theatre, game design, social media account, research & essays…
Bringing feminist perspectives and magnifying women’s voices in different ways.
Research: Asian female stand-up comedian’s challenges and representation
(the videos/audios are all consensually recorded)
Asian female comedians build their representations on stage and are faced with challenges off-stage.
I listened to their stories both on and off stage, through discourse analysis and interviews, to understand both their laughter and tears.
Audiences, the industry, and cultural beliefs create pressure on performances, leading to the underrepresentation and misrepresentation of Asian female comics. For instance, I found out that the former Ministry of Culture enforced anti-feminism rules, rejecting any comic script that dealt with gender issues to prevent “conflict between genders.”
“Isn't it just being a woman and having a good-looking face that gives you so many opportunities?”
“80% of the performing chances are booked at the men's drinking table, and the remaining 20% are grabbed by guys who don't drink and girls.”
“If a guy’s being extremely hilarious on stage, people laugh. But if a girl does the same, people will say, “I feel sorry for you that you have to be so shameless.”
Comedy Creations @Barnard
After learning from famous female comedians’ creations, such as those from Audre Lorde, Moms Mabley Ziwe, and Fran Lebowitz, I also tried creating comedy: some of them are below.
It’s like trying to find popping candy from a shard of prickly glass debris. As Lucille Ball said, “I’m not funny; what I am is brave.”, comedy creation is about peeling away the fragile side of one’s heart to show the audience; it’s an art of courage.
Sketch: Happy Straight Month
Humorous Essay: Attraction
Play: Cockroach AD
Humorous Essay: A Day in PCP
Group Improv
Gender Fair x Barbie Comedy Exhibition
To promote feminist knowledge in the school, I led a team of 3 and established a small interactive exhibition featuring Barbie 2023 at the school Gender Fair. By discussing the plot and characters of the movie with the audience, we aimed to promote feminist knowledge entertainingly and effectively.
Theatre & Feminism
I explored gender issues through theatre, such as crafting the script Beneath the Helmet, Behind the Door, the story between a female delivery worker and a victim of domestic violence, and creating a complete production The Home, which explores the generational trauma of females inside a home.
To watch the complete performance and learn more about my theatre journey, please click & go Beatrice & Theatre.
In the John Locke competition, I approached feminism-related discussions from interdisciplinary perspectives, specifically between gender studies and philosophy and law.
John Locke Essays
2024 Philosophy Category:
Do girls have a (moral) right to compete in sporting contests that exclude boys?
2023 Law Category:
Would justice be better served in the United States if more Supreme Court judges were women?
Board Game: Border Party
As 10 teammates’ collective effort, we completed a gender education cardboard game Border Party, hoping to popularize various types of female experiences among teenagers in a fun and educational way, so that those invisible female experiences can be seen.
Social Media Account: Newisme (New, Wise, and Me)
This little Red Book account was created to promote frequently blocked feminist knowledge and record women's experiences in society. As a team composed of all females, we want to publicize news for women, especially the phenomenon of women's rights and interests being infringed, in order to prevent them from being disregarded at present and distorted in the future.
For now, we already produced over 110 issues and attracted over 21,000 followers and 56,000 likes&favs!