NPO DANCE BOX

At Art Theater dB KOBE, we organize contemporary dance events and also rent the space for a wide variety of uses, including dance, theater, concerts, public talks, movie screenings, parties, and more. We aim to transmit a new sort of culture from the theater through the events we organize by cooperating with pioneering and experimental artists, works, and initiatives on the theme of “a theater of our own creation.”

We produce public performances for performing arts works by both domestic and foreign artists who work with physical expression centered on contemporary dance. Many of the works staged here are produced through an artist-in-residence process and are put on as world-first performances. We aim to produce a time during which the audience can experience dance firsthand by cooperating with artists who pursue the special qualities and potential of dance, express the issues of modern society right before the eyes of the audience, and tie together people from diverse backgrounds.

We hold workshops, lectures, and other events in an effort to contribute to the training of experts in the field of performing arts, including dancers, choreographers, producers, and technical staff. We have been implementing a training program named “Kokunai Dansu Ryugaku @Kobe” (Domestic Dance Study Abroad @Kobe) since 2012 for young dancers and choreographers, and approximately 70 graduates of this program are now growing their activities both domestically and abroad.

The neighborhood of Shin-Nagata, in which the theater is located, is bordered by the sea on one side and mountains on the other. With the memory of having flourished as the former center of industry in Kobe, as well as the experience of being hit by the Great Hanshin Earthquake which occurred in 1995, the area is home to a wide variety of people of different nationalities and homelands living together. As a theater in this sort of neighborhood, we perform collaborations while considering the role we should play here together with the people of the area. An art festival named Shitamachi Art Festival began in 2015 in cooperation with local residents, companies, and organizations, and we perform planning and operations for this festival along with these members as the festival’s organizing office.

We perform artist-in-residence programs and other programs through dance expression in cooperation with artists and organizations from a variety of cultural spheres. In recent years, we have been focusing on artists whose activities are based in Asian countries to develop projects. At the KOBE Asia Contemporary Dance Festival, which is held once every two years, we set a highly contemporary theme each time and, through performing international co-production with partners from other Asian countries, are able to also invite a large number of artists and introduce these artists and their works to a domestic audience.