Fran Zhao 赵洁敏

Field: Chinese Literature
Advisor: Wei Shang
Email: f.zhao@columbia.edu

Francesca is a PhD student majoring in premodern Chinese literature. For her dissertation, Francesca is working on the politics of the Ming (1368–1644) state theatre through the dual lenses of textualization and stage performance. Her research interests extend to the visual and material culture of East Asian religions.

Francesca has worked as a teaching assistant for courses on Chinese history, Buddhism, strategic visual communication, and Geographic Information Systems (GIS). She was a Lead Teaching Fellow and Teaching Observation Fellow with the Columbia Center for Teaching and Learning. 

Francesca received her BSocSci (Hons) in Geography with a minor in GIS, and MA (Research) in History from the National University of Singapore.