The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts (the Academy) is pleased to announce that Dr Joshua Abrams has been appointed as Deputy Director (Academic) of the Academy. Dr Abrams will assume duty on September 1, 2021.
As Deputy Director (Academic), Dr Abrams will manage and oversee the ongoing review and development of the Academy’s six Schools and academic units’ educational programmes, Registry, Centre for Education and Research, Library, and Extension & Continuing Education for Life (EXCEL). He will play a key role in planning and implementing the Academy’s strategic developments, developing a culture of Practice-as-Research, interdisciplinary education, and innovative technology to enhance teaching and learning.
Professor Gillian Choa, Director of the Academy, remarked, “Dr Abrams has over two decades of experience in the higher education sector. Amidst his extensive external connections with institutions globally, his expertise covers areas in drama pedagogy, academic programme development and accreditation, as well as interdisciplinary approaches to learning and research. With the distinguished career and the wealth of knowledge he possesses, I am fully confident that he will help enhance the Academy’s academic developments to a whole new level.”
Dr Abrams is currently Interim Dean of School and Director of Learning and Teaching at The Royal Central School of Speech and Drama, University of London (Central). He is also the President of the Association for Theatre in Higher Education. Dr Abrams graduated from Massachusetts Institute of Technology with an SB in Humanities and an SB in Management Science, then obtained an MA in Theatre from Brown University; and received his PhD in Theatre Studies in The City University of New York.
The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts (www.hkapa.edu)
The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts (HKAPA), established by The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts Ordinance in 1984, is a leading tertiary institution in the performing arts in Asia. It provides professional undergraduate education and practice-based postgraduate studies. The study encompasses Chinese Opera, Dance, Drama, Film and Television, Music, and Theatre and Entertainment Arts. Its educational philosophy reflects the cultural diversity of Hong Kong with emphasis on Chinese and Western traditions, and interdisciplinary learning. Since 2008, the Academy has attained the Programme Area Accreditation (PAA) status awarded by the Hong Kong Council for Accreditation of Academic and Vocational Qualifications (HKCAAVQ) to self-monitor and accredit its own Undergraduate and Post-secondary programmes in the five programme areas of Dance, Drama, Film and Television, Music, and Theatre and Entertainment Arts. Since 2016, the PAA status has been extended to cover Master’s Degree programmes and below. The programmes operated by the School of Chinese Opera are accredited by HKCAAVQ for recognition under the Hong Kong Qualifications Framework. Besides the main campus in Wanchai, Béthanie, the site of the Academy’s Landmark Heritage Campus in Pokfulam, has housed training facilities for the School of Film and Television since 2006. In the QS World University Rankings announced in 2021, the Academy is ranked 1st in Asia and 10th in the world in the Performing Arts category.