Phoebe is a transcultural scholar-practitioner-educator specialized in Embodied Art Therapy and Expressive Arts Healing, with over two decades of integrated academic research, and interdisciplinary teaching experience across performing arts, psychology, and drama education. Rooted in both Chinese performing arts pedagogy and Western transpersonal psychology, Phoebe bridges theatrical performance training, somatic psychology, and expressive arts healing to foster individual and collective well-being.
She holds the title of Associate Professor and Master’s Supervisor at the Shanghai Theatre Academy (China’s top performing arts institution), and serves as an Industry Mentor for Applied Psychology at Fudan University—blending her dual expertise in art and psychology to advance evidence-based expressive arts practices. As a globally certified Feldenkrais Method trainer, she infuses somatic awareness into all her expressive arts curricula, emphasizing the transformative power of the body as a core medium for creative expression and community empowerment.
Phoebe has excelled in professional artistic practice as a theatre actor and director, with notable international performance experience and rich directing achievements in university theatrical productions. Her extensive artistic practice provides a solid embodied expression foundation for her research and teaching in expressive arts healing.
Phoebe is a distinguished expert recognized with the Shanghai “Oriental Talent” title, and serves as a peer reviewer for the Ministry of Education’s Academic Degree Evaluation Center, an art discipline judge for China’s National Teacher Qualification Examination, and a teacher training mentor for the Ministry of Culture and Tourism. Her research and practice focus on centering expressive arts as a tool for cross-cultural connection, community building, and somatic healing.
University Email: phoebe.gao@sofia.edu
Instructor for Empowering Community Through Expressive Art
Credentials
PhD, Professor of Performing Arts, Globally Certified Feldenkrais Method Trainer, Senior Drama Education & Expressive Arts Healing Practitioner
Research Interests (Ph.D. Faculty)
Embodied Art Therapy, Expressive Arts Healing for Community Empowerment, Somatic Psychology in Creative Expression, Feldenkrais Method for Performing Arts & Art Therapy, Cross-Cultural Integration of Drama Education and Applied Psychology, Theatrical Performance as a Medium for Collective Healing
Education
PhD in Performing Arts and Culture,Shanghai Theater Academy
Visiting Scholar in Drama Education, University of Warwick (UK)
Systemic Training, Feldenkrais Method (Somatic Psychology & Embodied Practice)
Academic Appointments (Concurrent)
- Adjunct Professor & PhD Supervisor, Sofia University
- Professor & Master’s Supervisor, Department of Performance, Shanghai Theatre Academy
- Industry Mentor for Applied Psychology, Fudan University
Course Taught at Sofia University
“Empowering Community Through Expressive Art ”: Integrating Embodied Art Therapy, Feldenkrais somatic awareness, and community-engaged creative practices to build expressive arts healing capacities for diverse communities; centering transcultural expressive arts methodologies and collective creative empowerment.
Key Academic Publications (Monographs & Textbooks)
- Cultural Studies of Chinese Actors (1977-2021), Culture and Art Publishing House, 2024 《中国演员文化研究（1977-2021）》文化艺术出版社，2024
- Effortless Living: Feldenkrais Method for Somatic Well-Being, China Textile & Apparel Press, 2026 《省力的生活》，中国纺织出版社，2026
- Art & Drama: Embodied Creative Expression, Hunan Fine Arts Publishing House, 2024 《艺术·戏剧》湖南美术出版社，2024
- Anthology of Performance Teaching Fragments, Donghua University Press, 2017《表演教学片段选集》东华大学出版社，2017
Academic Papers
- (2025) Gazing at Each Other in Suffering: Characters, Bodies and Unintended Consequences in Midday Sun, Shanghai Art Review, Issue 12
- (2025) Remember The Father Before Memory Fades: Review of the 2024 Shanghai Dramatic Arts Center Version, Drama Review, Volume 6
- (2023) On the Role of the Feldenkrais Method in Actor Training, Theatre Arts (CSSCI), Issue 4
- (2021) Character Creation Methods: From Stanislavski to Michael Chekhov, Drama (CSSCI), Issue 3, pp.116-126
- (2020) Upholding Tradition and Innovating, Integrating China and the West: Conference Summary of the “Shanghai International Young Scholars Forum on Theatre, Film and Television”, Theatre Arts (CSSCI), Issue 5, pp.120-154
- (2019) Slices of Life of Seven Women — Memories of the Stage Play Memory Fragments, Shanghai Art Review, Issue 6, pp.21-23
- (2019) STDA’s Version of Woyzeck: Chinese Interpretation of a Philosophical Text, Shanghai Art Review, Issue 1, pp.33-35
- (2018) Objectless Practice and Objectless Performance in Acting, Theatre Arts (CSSCI), Issue 6, pp.117-127
- (2018) Symbolic Symbols in Kim Ki-duk’s Films, World Cinema (CSSCI), Issue 5, pp.187-192
- (2013) The Space of “Freedom” and Performance — On Peter Brook’s The Suit, Shanghai Theatre (Chinese Core Journal), Issue 2, pp.27-28
- (2012) A Study on Shanghai’s Small Theatre Drama and Urban Culture — Viewing Jiangnan Culture in the Theatre, Shanghai Theatre (Chinese Core Journal), Issue 12, pp.42-44
- (2012) From Exploration to the Evolution of Pop Culture — The Influence of Chinese Small Theatre Drama on Urban Culture, Drama Literature (Chinese Core Journal), Issue 12, pp.8-11
Artistic Practice
Theatrical Performance (Actor)
Starred in the French modern drama Red Herring (2023), invited to the Udine Theatre Festival (Italy)
Theatre Direction (Director)
University Performance Major Theatres | Directed undergraduate internship plays The Seagull海鸥, Village No. 1 on Treasure Island 宝岛一村(2024) and Family 家(2018,2021), graduation play Woyzeck (2018) for the Performance Department of Shanghai Theatre Academy
