The self in the age of social media

Chen, who is also a facilitator at Drama Rainbow Education, the organization producing the play, conducted one-on-one conversations with the young members and their parents before its launch last September.

From these discussions, she learned that many students were experiencing subtle forms of cyberbullying. Unlike direct confrontations that could be reported to teachers, these incidents often remained hidden from adults.

In more than one case, the students changed their profile picture or shared something on social media — a song, a photo — that was then mocked by their peers, leading to distress and isolation.

"I felt with a sense of urgency that today's teenagers are very different from our generation. These days, parents protect their children very carefully in life, but don't know how to monitor them online, often leaving them unsupervised," Chen says.

"As a result, children cannot express themselves in the real world and turn to the internet. There, they encounter many problems they can't discuss with adults, because adults might dismiss these issues as insignificant."

Chen then shared her concerns about technology and social media with Chris Cooper, an expert in theater in education and a consultant for Drama Rainbow Education, and invited him to write the play.

"We urgently needed a play that responded to the situations these children are facing," she adds.

"Chris Cooper is a remarkable playwright and director with a strong understanding of China. I feel that having such a visionary extract the experiences of today's children and transform them into a play is incredibly important."