Founder and Managing Director of The Playhouse

CEO of FRAMEWORKS

As a mum of 2 under 6, Alexandra knows parents concerns with wanting to raise competent, bilingual and future-ready individuals.

The genesis of The Playhouse stems from her work with FRAMEWORKS, where she has witnessed the growing challenges schools have with supporting the next generation of competent, confident and innovative individuals.

A graduate of University College London (UCL) where she read Art History, then obtained an M.F.A from Royal Central School of Speech and Drama, Alexandra is keen to bring the enigmatic world of Arts and Culture to children earlier in their developmental journey. With the aim to use the Arts to teach children how to communicate effectively and think laterally about the world around them, supporting the next generation to sustain a sense of curiosity throughout their lives, so they can be ready for what ever the future holds.

Alexandra is a bilingual speaker (English and Cantonese) she is also a certified Transformational Coach and a Parenting Facilitator from the UK based Parent Practice.

Certified St John's Ambulance infant CPR 2024

Operations and Project Manager

Joanne Cheung, born and raised in Hong Kong, is a versatile professional with a keen eye for art and business. With a Master’s degree in Fine Arts from Glasgow School of Art and a Bachelor of Arts (Hons) in Marketing Management from Edinburgh Napier University, Joanne combines creativity and strategic thinking in her work.

Her career spans roles in curation, marketing, and business development, including positions at RCS Artelier, M Group, Tarte Cosmetics, and Perspective Magazine. Joanne has also contributed her skills as a producer for photography and video production, collaborating with Luke Casey on creative projects for various brands.

Joanne’s expertise includes project leadership, process optimization, art direction, and project management. She is particularly interested in the intersection of art and advertising, a passion that began in 2014 with her artworks inspired by Hong Kong culture and Chinese aesthetics. Her work continues to explore and bring the potential of art into daily life.

Certified St John's Ambulance Paediatric First Aid ICAFW 2024

Tinker Art Tots and StoryPlay coach (English)

Janella is an interdisciplinary artist, educator, and Expressive Arts therapist based in Hong Kong. As a lifelong practitioner of art and play, her journey is profoundly shaped by her experiences as a third culture kid navigating a vibrant, transitional city. This background fuels her curiosity about the unknown and spontaneity—essential ingredients for authentic play.

After earning a degree in Conceptual Art from the San Francisco Art Institute, Janella returned to Hong Kong and discovered her passion for community building. Through her work with marginalized populations both locally and internationally, she has witnessed the transformative power of art and play, even in the most challenging circumstances. This insight inspired her to pursue a Master's degree in Expressive Arts Therapy from the European School. She has since co-founded an Expressive Arts studio that offers opportunities for communities to experience multimodal expression.

From teaching English through art-making to facilitating workshops that promote healing from trauma, she is keenly aware of childrens' natural expertise with experimentation and play and greets each session as an educational exchange.

Karki is a passionate art educator dedicated to empowering students through creativity. She uses art as a tool for self-expression, fostering a joyful classroom environment where students develop essential art skills alongside lifelong resilience. Her teaching encourages open communication, peer collaboration, and idea-sharing, building confidence and community through every project.

She thoughtfully integrates mindfulness and psychological principles into her practice, helping students use the creative process to calm their minds and nurture emotional well-being. Committed to sustainability in her own art practice, she crafts eco-friendly art materials from natural resources like fruits, vegetables, and flowers.

She holds a Master of Letters in Arts of China from the University of Glasgow, a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the University of the Arts London, and a Postgraduate Diploma in Early Childhood Education from Hong Kong Baptist University. She is currently advancing her psychological insight through a Master of Counselling at Monash University.

Description Graduated with a B.A in Fine Art from Norwich University of the Arts, Yanni tries to connect seemingly unrelated concepts by playing with structure. She feels driven to reinterpret her observations by manipulating colour and formation. Yanni hopes to share this sentiment with her students, encouraging them to visualise their ideas and help shape their unique creative lens. Fluent in English, Mandarin and Cantonese, she hopes that all her students feel supported as they develop their own understandings of the outside world.

Tinker Art Tots Coach (Cantonese)

A graduate of The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts (Drama) and The University of Hong Kong (Social Sciences), Demian believes his experience with acting helped him to gain a deeper more empathetic understanding of others, which enables him to recognise emotions behind verbal and nonverbal communication.

Demian is interested in supporting children in discovering themselves through the Arts, in hopes their experience of the Arts will add to a new dimension to their self-growth.

StoryPlay (English/Mandarin)

With over 10 years of clay art experience, Apple specializes in teaching children ages 4+ how to shape, problem-solve, and bring their imagination to life. Apple values the freedom of creative expression, and take a patient, encouraging approach to help each child explore their artistic potential. Fluent in English, Cantonese, and Mandarin, Apple offers a fun and inclusive learning environment for young artists!

Tinker Art Tots Coach (Cantonese and Mandarin)

Man Tsun Yin graduated from the School of Drama at the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts, majoring in acting. His on-campus performances include "A Journey of Sanshiro", "Juliet and Romeo", The Unthinkable Drama Festival 2023 : "Morning", "The Ten Oxen of Ours", and "Ng Wong The Swordsman". During his studies, he won the Outstanding Actor Award and the Outstanding Character Performance Award for his performance in "Juliet and Romeo", and had previously received the Louis Koo Scholarships.

In addition to theater, he served as Children Pastoral Teacher for Crossroad Community Baptist Church from 2014-2021

Art Fundamentals I coach

Ming is a passionate artist and educator dedicated to sharing her love for drawing and painting with others. Specialized in oil painting and skilled in watercolor, gouache, colored pencils, and graphite, she fosters creativity in students of all ages through various artistic mediums. Ming believes in the transformative power of art as a tool for self-expression and personal growth. Through engaging workshops and classes, she inspires her students to explore their artistic potential and develop their unique voices. When not in the studio, Ming loves connecting with fellow artists to exchange ideas and explore different techniques, fueled by a strong desire to deepen her knowledge in the field

ConstructionPlay Lead Coach and Mentor

Nick Tsao, founder of Tsaoao Design, is an architectural graduate from Cambridge University and the Chinese University of Hong Kong. He is a practicing architect in Hong Kong with a passion for traditional paper crafts. He currently lives in the historic Wanchai Bluehouse, where he shares his passion for traditional crafts.

Tsaoao Design 創辦人曹晉愷畢業於香港中文大學建築學碩士及劍橋大學建築系學士課程。曹晉愷在香港從事建築設計工作並喜愛研究傳統紙藝創作。現居於灣仔藍屋，並以此為剪紙工作室，研究傳統紙藝創作。

PaperPlay I & II Coach and Mentor

Pauline is a Hong Kong based artist who has specialised in working with paper for many years, making sculptural pieces of nature based artworks inspired by Hong Kong’s rich and abundant Flora and Fauna.

Working with paper is such a versatile material and to push the boundaries of what can be created from a single sheet of paper is such a wonderful creative challenge.

For many years Pauline has worked in the commercial arts and design area, collaborating and commissioned by some of Hong Kong’s renowned brands, including Pacific Place, Cartier, Dior, PMQ, Hermes, Lane Crawford, Cathay Pacific to name a few.

One of Hong Kong’s most experienced and versatile arts professionals, Prof Gillian Choa has taken charge as Director of Hong Kong’s leading performing arts academy, The Hong Kong Academy for the Performing Arts since Jan 2021.

A passionate educator, she became the first woman, and the first Hongkonger, to head The Hong Kong Academy for the Performing Arts (HKAPA)when she stepped up to the role of the organisation’s Director in 2021.

Gillian joined the Academy full time as a member of its Theatre Design Department in 1996 and was appointed Dean of the School of Theatre and Entertainment Arts from 2013 to 2019, and Deputy Director and Provost from 2019 before her appointment as Director. Under her leadership, the Academy has been ranked 1st in Asia for six consecutive years at the QS Ranking – performing arts category.

Gillian has also worked in numerous different roles within the arts. She began her career in Hong Kong as the first Resident Designer of the Chung Ying Theatre Company, then worked in a wide variety of roles across Hong Kong’s performance and entertainment industry, including as a set, costume and lighting designer for theatre, film and television. She has designed displays for luxury brands including Tiffany and Hermès, presented a classical music TV programme, and edited architectural and fashion magazines.

She has been serving the community actively and is on many boards and committees of organisations and advisory groups that include Create HK, the Advisory Committee on Arts Education, and the Human Resources Planning Commission, HKSAR Outstanding Students’ Union, HKJC Music and Dance Fund, HK Society for the Deaf, Spastic Association of HK, Federation of New Territories Youth, HK Youth & Tertiary Students Association, VTC’s Design Discipline Advisrory Board, Hok Yau Club, Woo Foo Leaders Network, Zonta Club of Hong Kong, and so forth.

Cherie Chen is a bilingual educational professional with a Master’s degree in Early Childhood Education from The University of Hong Kong and a Bachelor’s degree in Early Childhood and Special Education from New York University. With over 10 years of experience, she has led playgroups in Hong Kong and Shanghai, specializing in nurturing children from infancy to age 8 through play-based, hands-on, and creative learning environments. Her background as a classroom teacher at Victoria Organization and Malvern College Preschool equipped her with expertise in implementing IB and EYFS curricula and supporting diverse learning needs.

Cherie has a passion for designing meaningful play and community activities, fostering holistic development, and conducting research on future education trends to remain at the forefront of innovative teaching. Committed to creating enriching and engaging experiences, she is dedicated to supporting children in their earliest and most formative years.

PhD (La Trobe University in Australia)

DipChSt (CGST)

B.A., PGDE, M.A. (Ed) (CUHK)

Parker is the founder of Cobli, the most advanced vehicle telematics and mobility platform in Latin America. Launched in 2017, the company has already raised more than $20mm from investors such as Fifth Wall Ventures and Valor Capital Group. Cobli won the Harvard Business School New Venture Competition in 2016, becoming the first Latin American startup to receive the award. In 2019, Cobli was elected by LinkedIn as one of the top ten startups in Brazil. Previously, Parker founded First Help Financial, the tenth largest independent vehicle finance company in the U.S., funding over $600mm of historical originations. Parker studied mathematics at Duke University, has an MBA from Harvard Business School, and is a member of Forbes Technology Council.

Professor Kevin W. H. Tai is Assistant Professor of Language and Literacy Education and Co-Director of the Centre for Advancement in Inclusive and Special Education (CAISE) at the Faculty of Education, The University of Hong Kong (HKU).

In relation to his editorial positions, Kevin Tai is Editor of The Language Learning Journal (Routledge), Assistant Editor of the International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism (Routledge) and Executive Guest Editor of Learning and Instruction (Elsevier).

Kevin Tai's research interests include Conversation Analysis for Second Language Acquisition, translanguaging in education, classroom discourse and qualitative research methods.

He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts (FRSA) and a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (FHEA).

Dominica, HK born and bred, is a keen supporter of the arts, education, and philanthropic causes in Hong Kong and in the United Kingdom for many years. She currently works on projects focusing on art, culture, education, disabilities and dementia, helping to network bringing together fruitful collaborations and ventures.

Dominica was the Chairman of the Board of Governors of the Hong Kong Arts Centre 2018-2024. She also sits on the Culture Commission set up by the Government of the Hong Kong SAR.

From Charities, NGOs to Education bodies, she has helped with branding, outreach, networking, and fundraising projects.

After her secondary and tertiary education in the United Kingdom, she went onto to pursue art and did a Diploma in Photography at the London School of Photography. In 1987, she returned to Hong Kong and worked in the rag trade, before running her own interior decorating business for 10 years. Her passion for cooking resulted in her publication of 4 cookbooks, all to benefit charitable causes – Children’s Thalassaemia Foundation, Facing the World (UK), Room to Read ( HK and UK), Hong Kong Red Cross & Fu Hong Society (for the Disabled). She is the co-founder of the Dementia support group ‘Brain Health Initiative’ in Hong Kong.

Dominica went to St Leonard’s Mayfield School and the School of Slavonic and East European Studies which is now part of University College London.

Daniel Tan has over 10 years experience in agile project management, strategic planning and business development with Fortune 500 companies such as Adidas, Lululemon and DFS.

Daniel has a BMgt from University of British Columbia.