YPAM Talk Event (Meeting Point)

The Japan Foundation (JF), in collaboration with YPAM (Yokohama International Performing Arts Meeting), is organizing talks and symposiums led by overseas professionals invited to Japan through the JF–YPAM Invitation Program for Professionals in Performing Arts 2025.

Artists who participated in the Performing Arts Exchange Program 2025 in Singapore and Bangkok (co-organized by JF and YPAM) will also share their artistic practices during their sessions.

Symposium

YPAM Direction: Renew, Reframe & Reimagine

YPAM Direction, YPAM's official performance program, will relaunch this year as a professional-only series of informal presentations and discussions. YPAM invited three colleagues who have developed innovative artist labs and networking programs across Asia during the 2010s and 2020s to examine this new format and jointly select participating artists. In this symposium, they will share their experiences in the space between conception and production, rich with potential, inquiry and local/regional contexts, and discuss how these experiences inform their vision for the renewed YPAM Direction.

Overview

Date/Time	December 9, 2025 (Tuesday) 10:30-12:00
Speaker	Daniel Kok Artistic Director, Dance Nucleus River Lin Independent Curator Sasapin Siriwanij producer / Artistic Director, Bangkok International Performing Arts Meeting Tomoyuki Arai Senior Program Officer, Yokohama International Performing Arts Meeting

Organized by the Japan Foundation and Yokohama International Performing Arts Meeting Executive Committee

Perspectives in Programming and the Network of Theaters/Festivals

How are the programs constructed, with what kind of philosophy and methods, at the theaters and festivals that are rooted in the local contexts yet transcend them at the same time to unfold internationally? And, what is the significance of networks that connect those theaters and festivals? The session will focus on the cases in Asia-Pacific and Europe to consider those questions. This session is part of the “Training Program for International Performing Arts Coordinators” under the Japan Creator Support Fund.

Overview

Date/Time	December 11, 2025 (Thursday) 10:00-12:00
Speaker	Kris Nelson Festival Director, Sydney Festival Ratri Anindyajati Director, Indonesian Dance Festival Jonathan Thonon Director of International Relations and Development, Théâtre de Liège (Moderator) Kei Saito Performing arts administrator / producer

Organized by Agency for Cultural Affairs, Government of Japan / Japan Arts Council / The Association of Public Theaters and Halls in Japan

In cooperation with Yokohama International Performing Arts Meeting (YPAM)

Special partnership: The Japan Foundation

Roundtable

Bodies and Stories Beyond Borders: Contemporary Southeast Asian Performing Arts in Dialogue

Southeast Asian performing arts have long spoken, resisted, and preserved memory through the body amid historical, social, and political changes. In this session, artists and curators from Indonesia, Myanmar, Cambodia, and Vietnam will share their practices around the themes of crossing borders, cultural inheritance, the body, and storytelling, offering multiple perspectives on the state of performing arts in the region today. Through dialogue across communities and generations, the session reflects on what the body can express in the present and envision for the future.

Overview

Date/Time	December 9, 2025 (Tuesday) 13:00-13:40
Speaker	Helly Minarti Curator / Dramaturg / Scholar / Founder, LINGKARAN | koreografi P Cube Curator / Artist, Artis-Hood Ka Kou Artist, The Department of Performing Arts, Ministry of Culture and Fine Arts of Cambodia Nguyen Hai Yen (Red) MORUA/ Co-founder, Project Day San

Organized by the Japan Foundation and Yokohama International Performing Arts Meeting Executive Committee

Mapping Southeast Asian Platforms: Exploring Sustainable Management

Amid differing cultural policies and funding structures across countries and regions, sustaining performing arts platforms remains a major challenge. In this session, speakers involved in platform initiatives in Thailand and Indonesia will share distinctive, sustainable models they have developed through collaboration between artists and organizers and the sharing of resources. Together, they will reflect on the possibilities of platforms that can support both creation and management—and connect to the next generation.

Overview

Date/Time	December 9, 2025 (Tuesday) 14:00-14:40
Speaker	Kuntara Chaicharn Operation Manager, Bangkok International Performing Arts Meeting Parnrut Kritchanchai Director, Bangkok Theatre Festival Yustiansyah Lesmana Artistic Director, Djakarta International Theater Platform Setsiri Nirandara Director, Bangkok Theatre Festival / Thailand

Organized by the Japan Foundation and Yokohama International Performing Arts Meeting Executive Committee

Presentation

Introducing the Japanese Artists Who Participated in the Performing Arts Exchange Program in Bangkok, co-organized by the Japan Foundation and YPAM

The Japan Foundation and YPAM have been jointly running the Performing Arts Exchange Program since last year. The program supports emerging Japan-based artists who aspire to work internationally—particularly within the ASEAN region—or to collaborate with artists from that area. In this session, participating artists from the Bangkok edition of the program share their experiences at the Bangkok Theatre Festival, GHOST:2568, and a workshop led by Pichet Klunchun, as well as introduce their own artistic practices.

Overview

Date/Time	December 10, 2025 (Wednesday) 10:30-12:00
Speaker	Kanae Asakawa (Dancer / Choreographer) Tomomi Onuki (Artist / Architect) Emi Ogura (Dancer / Performer / Choreographer / Director) Ayako Kato (Violinist / Artist) Keitaro Kamo (Director / Producer) Takuya Takemoto (Performance)

Organized by the Japan Foundation and Yokohama International Performing Arts Meeting Executive Committee

Reference:Performing Arts Exchange Program 2025 in Bangkok

Education, Creativity, and Community Revitalization: Reimagining the "Gaze" Across Southeast Asia

Drawing from education, local communities, and creative practice, performing arts in Southeast Asia continue to evolve in response to social change. This session features Icee Po from the Philippine Educational Theater Association (PETA), who addresses social issues through education; Siphai Thammavong from Laos, who works to preserve and pass on local cultural heritage; and Ridhwan Saidi from Malaysia, whose creative practice explores the intersections of urban life and imagination. Through their diverse practices, the session reflects on the relationship between art and society across Asia.

Overview

Date/Time	December 10, 2025 (Wednesday) 14:00-14:40
Speaker	Icee Po Managing Producer, Philippine Educational Theater Association Ridhwan Saidi Co-founder / Director, Moka Mocha Ink Siphai Thammavong Storyteller, Garavek Theatre

Organized by the Japan Foundation and Yokohama International Performing Arts Meeting Executive Committee

From Seeds to Stages: Cultivating Connections between Indonesia, Japan, and the World

Indonesia's performing arts ecosystem grows more interconnected, bridging artists, festivals, and government initiatives. This session brings together producers and festival directors to reflect on recent shifts, navigating possibilities for meaningful collaborations. They will explore how resource sharing and exchanges help cultivate visibility and care, encouraging more opportunities for international engagements across various stages and communities.

Overview

Date/Time	December 10, 2025 (Wednesday) 15:00-15:40
Speaker	Rebecca Kezia Director, aRRRah / Co-founder, Indonesia Producers’ Network Rama Thaharani Program Director, Kelola Foundation Linda Mayasari Dramaturg / Curator / Arts Organizer Keni Soeriaatmadja Team coordinator, Manajemen Talenta Nasional [MTN]

Organized by the Manajemen Talenta Nasional (MTN), the Japan Foundation and Yokohama International Performing Arts Meeting Executive Committee

Introducing the Japanese Artists Who Participated in the Performing Arts Exchange Program in Singapore, co-organized by the Japan Foundation and YPAM

The Japan Foundation and YPAM have been jointly running the Performing Arts Exchange Program since last year. The program supports emerging Japan-based artists who aspire to work internationally—particularly within the ASEAN region—or to collaborate with artists from that area. In this session, participating artists from the Singapore edition of the program—organized in ongoing collaboration with Esplanade – Theatres on the Bay and Dance Nucleus—share their experiences at da:ns LAB, CAN (Connect Asia Now), and Vector, as well as introduce their own artistic practices.

Overview

Date/Time	December 11, 2025 (Thursday) 10:30-12:00
Speaker	Sei Kigawa (Dancer / Choreographer) Minami Nakayashiki (Dancer / Choreographer) Wataru Mukai (Composer / Artist) Akane Yamaguchi (Playwright / Theatre Director)

Organized by the Japan Foundation and Yokohama International Performing Arts Meeting Executive Committee

Reference：Performing Arts Exchange Program 2025 in Singapore

Venue:

Forum Minamiota (Gender Equality Center Yokohama South)
1-7-20 Minamiota, Minami-ku, Yokohama City, Kanagawa

Interpretation:

*Symposiums with simultaneous interpretation
*Presentations & Roundtables with consecutive interpretation

Reservation:

Participation is limited to YPAM registrants only.
Please register via Participation | YPAM

YPAM Official Webpage: Meeting Point | YPAM