Dance Base Yokohama ( DaBY ) will soon celebrate its third anniversary.

While there were many major changes in plans as we embarked on the Corona Disaster, it was also a valuable period of deep and meaningful dialogue with the dance artists and staff involved, who are active in Japan.

Under circumstances unforeseen at the time of its establishment, DaBY has made gradual changes to the way in which its resident artists and dancers are invited to create in Japan, in order to better suit the Japanese theatrical environment.

For the fiscal year 2023, DaBY has newly issued an open call for artists under the age of 35 to become DaBY resident artists in order to provide a fulfilling creative environment for the younger generation. 1

In the selection process, we had an opportunity to talk directly with those who shared the DaBY concept from among the 19 groups that submitted written applications.

The following three perspectives were most important here.

　 The applicant must have a desire to promote himself/herself as a professional artist in Japan. Professional in this case includes thinking about the artist’s role in society by establishing contact with society and a relationship with the audience through his/her activities.

　 The applicant must share DaBY’s concept and be willing to work together to improve the performing arts environment in Japan. Emphasizes not only its own activities but also sharing and implementing the current issues of the performing environment.

　All people who gather at DaBY should respect each other and strive to share their opinions in a flat manner . We propose fair creation. 2

We were pleased to find that all the artists we interviewed were aware of the same issues as DaBY and very sympathetic to our concept.

Due to the space available in the studio, it may be better to limit the number of artists in order to provide a fulfilling creative environment. However, we have decided that it is important to share our awareness of the issues and exchange opinions with as many artists as possible who wish to think together about the Japanese performing environment under the current circumstances. We have decided to ask all of the eleven units that were interviewed to become artists in residence for the year 2023.

Many of the artists we met also expressed a desire to share information and interact with others of their generation or from different genres, and we realized that DaBY is expected to serve as a “community around dance,” which was one of the objectives when it was established.

We are also asking the eight experienced artists already in residence, both in Japan and abroad, to continue to act as mentors to the new artists/dancers in residence.

The cultivation and development of the arts requires the support of the audience. We would like to ask again for your further support for the improvement of the performing environment in Japan through your involvement with DaBY in various ways.

 

Dance Base Yokohama Artistic Director
Eri Karatsu

 

◇New Residence Artists in 2023

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Yuki Ayato

Onaya Rion (room.Onaya Rion)

Ayaka Ono Akira Nakazawa Spacenotblank

Naoyuki Sakai

Koichiro Tamura

Shokai Nita

Mana Hashimoto

Yohei Hamada

Kohei Fujimura

BALA

 

Please refer to the following pages for more information on each artist, including their profiles.
Artist in Residence / Dancer in Residence: https://dancebase.yokohama/creator/residence_artist

 

*Reference 1

In order to work as a DaBY Artist-in-Residence/Dancer-in-Residence, we confirm that you understand and comply with the following terms and conditions for each activity.

Activities with a social perspective: Based on an understanding of the DaBY concept* , activities must be a response to the current performing arts and social environment, as well as a reflection on the relationship to society. For more information, please contact https://dancebase.yokohama/concept

DaBY’ s principle is to create a healthy creation environment by avoiding the creation of closed spaces. In addition, DaBY aims to practice “fair creation” in order to create a place where participating creators and staff can communicate equally. *It is possible to temporarily close the doors and windows and use the space in a closed state, such as during tryouts or when you want to focus on your work.

(3) Attitude of Respect Please commit to conducting creations based on a relationship of mutual respect with all participating creators, staff members, and other members involved in DaBY. Sexual harassment, power harassment, or any other behavior that lacks respect is prohibited.

 

*Reference 2

Fair Creation Declaration

Dance Base Yokohama (DaBY) aims to build a healthy creative environment,
(1) To respect all people involved in creative activities, regardless of their careers or positions.
(2) To create an open space for third parties, including the audience, to participate.
The company has declared its commitment to “Fair Creation” and has named its efforts “Fair Creation”.
Fair Creation is DaBY’s unique concept that applies the idea of “fair trade.
DaBY aims to create a sustainable dance environment together with the audience by allowing them to observe the work from the creation process and to select and appreciate works created in a flat environment.

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