Changing Faces: One Performer, Many Masks is an ongoing performance project by Zhijie Zhang, which has toured extensively across the UK since its debut in 2022 at Trafalgar Square. Throughout 2023 alone, the work was presented in over 30 performances across cities including Oxford, Cambridge, Bristol, and London, reaching an audience of more than 50,000 people.
Moving beyond conventional theatrical formats, Zhang develops the project as a cross-cultural performance practice. By integrating elements such as endangered animal imagery and local cultural references, the work adapts to different contexts while maintaining a strong social and symbolic resonance.
In 2024, the project expanded its artistic language through the introduction of puppetry, allowing mask-changing techniques to be performed not only by the performer but also through constructed figures. This development opened new possibilities for exploring philosophical and spiritual themes, combining traditional performance techniques with contemporary scenographic approaches.
The project has also gained international visibility. Zhijie Zhang was invited to perform in Paris following interest from French television, and later appeared as a representative performer for the Chinese National Pavilion at the Cannes TV Festival. Alongside performance, Zhang has collaborated with artists in photographic projects exploring stage presence and performative tension.
Education and public engagement remain central to the work. Through workshops, lectures, and outreach programmes — including a public lecture in Oxford in 2024 and ongoing activities in schools across the UK — Zhang contributes to discussions around intercultural exchange and the role of performance in creative development.
Rather than positioning himself as a traditional cultural presenter, Zhijie Zhang approaches performance as an evolving space for cross-cultural dialogue, where different influences are continuously absorbed, reinterpreted, and transformed.
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