The 7th Theatre School Directors’ Conference & Theatre Festival of UNESCO ITI Asia - Pacific Bureau

Over 29-30 March 2008, sixteen theatre institutes from thirteen countries and regions in the Asia-Pacific region gathered at the Shanghai Theater Academy (STA) to hold the first conference of the theatre school directors of the Asia Pacific Bureau (APB), marking the official establishment of the APB of the UNESCO Chair - International Theatre Institute. In the following six years, Shanghai Theater Academy, Indian National School of Drama, Taipei National University of the Arts and Vietnam Training and Practicing Centre for the Performing Arts held director conferences, drama festivals and exhibitions respectively. By April 2014, the school number of APB has risen to 21 and is expected for further expansion.

 

This year’s APB program is jointly sponsored by STA and the National Academy of Chinese Theatre Arts (NACTA). The main activities include a director conference, drama performances, workshops and academic symposiums, held respectively at STA over 10-15 May 2014 and NACTA over 15-17 May 2014. More than twenty institutes and schools from different countries and regions will participate in the event, including China, South Korea, Australia, India, Indonesia, Japan, Iran, Mongolia, Singapore, Malaysia, Philippines, Vietnam, Bangladesh, Taipei and Hong Kong.

Nowadays, the importance of the drama education in Asia-Pacific countries has become increasingly prominent, with more performing and practicing activities organized by the theatre institutes and schools as well as more frequent and closer interscholastic exchanges. The APB program this year thus provides a broad platform for mutual demonstration and experience-sharing among members, bringing benefits to faculty and students, expanding their artistic visions, experimenting different artistic practices and teaching methods as well as diversifying the outcomes of the theatrical education. Shanghai Theater Academy, where APB is located, will continue to play the role as an important link among theatre institutes and schools in the Asia-Pacific region, promoting the interaction and exchange among different regional cultures.