Tokyo Festival FarmOpen Call for Farm-Lab Exhibition Participants (Performers)[Deadline: Sunday, June 20, 2021 11:59 PM (JST)]An open call for performers to join a performing arts piece (trial creation) co-directed by Ness
Roque and Osamu Shikichi.

An interactive piece in which Ness Roque performed as a caretaker.
Festival/Tokyo19 Transfield from Asia “Sand (a)isles”
Directed and Designed by JK Anicoche + Rick Yamakawa

A performance directed by Osamu Shikichi.
“happy ice-cream” YDC2020(Photo: Kota Sugawara)(Photo: Alloposidae)

To places you cannot reach alone
Farm-Lab Exhibition, a Tokyo Festival Farm program, offers an opportunity for artists to create a transcultural
performing arts piece, with the aim of exploring possibilities for international collaboration. It seeks to nurturetalent through experimenting with the creation process, and to eventually show the work at Tokyo Festival andother international programs. Participants from various backgrounds will inspire one another to try new creative
approaches and communication methods, and use audience feedback to elevate their practice.
This year, a directorial team composed of Ness Roque and Osamu Shikichi invites artists across Asia toparticipate in the Farm-Lab Exhibition.
*In 2021, Tokyo Festival APAF Exhibition was renamed Tokyo Festival Farm: Farm-Lab Exhibition.

｜Tokyo Festival Website https://tokyo-festival.jp
Organized by Tokyo Festival Executive Committee [Toshima City, Toshima Mirai Cultural Foundation, Tokyo
Metropolitan Foundation for History and Culture (Tokyo Metropolitan Theatre & Arts Council Tokyo)]Supported by the Agency for Cultural Affairs, Government of Japan in the fiscal 2021
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Farm-Lab Exhibition Program Overview
Emerging artists across Asia will come together to experiment in creating a performing arts piece. Ness Roque(APAF2020 Lab participant) and Osamu Shikichi (APAF2018 Art Camp participant and APAF2019 Exhibitionscenographer) comprise the directorial team and will select performers through an open call. All participants willtake part in the collaborative creation process. Playwright and director Masataka Matsuda will support thedirectorial team as an advisor.
The creation process begins online in late-July and participants will come to Tokyo for a month-long residency inOctober. In the final week of October, they will perform their work-in-progress to the public at Tokyo Metropolitan
Theater’s Atelier East and Atelier West and receive audience feedback to further polish the work.
■​Program ScheduleDates: Late July 2021 - Monday, November 1
Location
Meet-and-greet

Online (via Zoom)

Online rehearsals

Dates
Late July*Dates to be decided with the selected participants
Mid September onwards: 1-2 meetings per week, about 2hours long each
*Details to be decided with the selected participants

Residency

Suitengu Pit (Tokyo)

10/1 (Fri) - 10/25 (Mon): 1 - 6 PM for 5-6 days a week

Work-in-Progress
Presentation (open tothe public)

Tokyo Metropolitan Theater, 10/26 (Tue) - 10/31 (Sun)Atelier East and Atelier*Rehearsals and at least 3 performances to be scheduled
Westbetween the above dates

Wrap Up/Closing
Ceremony

To be confirmed

11/1 (Mon)*Please note that the program is subject to change based on COVID-19 conditions (for example, we may
hold the Tokyo residency portion online). In the event that the Tokyo residency becomes impossible, we will
make necessary adjustments to continue the program. Under those circumstances, we do not expect to makechanges to the schedule, fee, or other conditions for participation.
*For participants living outside of Japan, the residency is scheduled from September 15 to November 2(see details below). Please note that the waiting period is subject to change based on COVID-19 conditions.
September 15-16: Flight to Tokyo
September 16-30: Waiting period (14 days)*To prevent the spread of the virus, we ask that you undergo a 14-day waiting period
upon arrival at a designated location. During this time, you will participate in 1-2
weekly online rehearsals (see above).
October 1-November 1: In-person creation period at the rehearsal space and venue
November 2: Flight from Tokyo*Please note that we may notify you of additional commitments, such as viewings of other Tokyo Festival 2021
works or meet-and-greets with other Tokyo Festival Farm program participants.
*The above schedule is accurate as of June 1st and subject to minor alterations.
■​Venues:
Creation period: Online (Zoom), Suitengu Pit (a two-minute walk from Suitengu Station on the Tokyo MetroHanzomon Line)
Work-in-progress presentation period: Tokyo Metropolitan Theatre, Atelier East and Atelier West (a two-minutewalk from West Exit of Ikebukuro Station)2

■ Creation environment:-Communication between participants will mostly be conducted in English. Interpreters will be present throughout
the meetings and rehearsals to assist communication with many of the Japanese-speaking organizers and staff
members.
-During the residency, we will follow a strict code of prevention measures against COVID-19.
-The following members will provide support for communication and the creation process:Producer: Junnosuke Tada (Tokyo Festival Farm Director)
Advisor: Masataka Matsuda
Communication Design Team: Art Translators Collective
Production: APAF Office
To ensure a safe creative space that is non-discriminatory to individuals of all social categories,
the Tokyo Festival Farm will follow the “Tokyo Festival Farm Guidelines”(https://tokyo-festival.jp/2020/en/program/farm2021/). We expect all participants to adhere to theseprinciples.

A Message from the Directorial TeamNess RoqueAs we step into the second year of a world reeling from a global pandemic, I am honored to share this privilege ofcreating a work with fellow artists from the region. As a performance-maker, I would like to actively take part inproposing new possibilities of being and understanding how it is to be alive in this particular point of ourhistory—new experiences of live-ness; new types of gathering and assembly; and emergent solidarities
exchanged through transnational communities. Coming together as we exist in and from different places, but
certainly living through the same time. I look forward to meeting you.
Ness RoqueThe Philippines

Photo: Ralph Lumbres

Ness Roque (b. 1991, Angeles City, Philippines), is a theater and film actor, performance dramaturg, andeducator. Ness was a core member of Manila-based contemporary performance company Sipat Lawin
Ensemble (2009–2018). She is part of Prodjx Artist Community, an interdisciplinary collective integrating
participatory art and research practices, community engagement, and education into various projects in thePhilippines and the Asia-Pacific Region. Ness is a MEXT scholar and is currently a graduate student at theTokyo University of the Arts - Graduate School of Global Arts (Arts Studies and Curatorial Practices).
Recently, she has been exploring sound-based performative gestures as site-specific interventions in urban
spaces. Ness was part of APAF Lab 2020. www.nessroque.com

Osamu Shikichi
What does it mean to collaborate internationally on a performance with artists across Asia today? What are thepossibilities? This is an attempt by people who don’t share the same language to create something together. Insuch an environment, we can’t help but be silent. And that is precisely when the true value of those of us who use
our body as a creative medium comes into question. When our movements come from a place like this, they
represent the potential of communication in the absence of defined meaning. In today’s world where various ideas
spring up everywhere, coexist, and oppose one another, I hope we can view this opportunity at the macro level.
Let us move beyond our nationalities as a large, collective body that gestures as one to catch a glimpse of thecapacity of connection through the incomprehensible.
Osamu Shikichi
JapanChoreographer/dancer born in Japan in 1994. Graduated from Musashino Art University Department of
Sculpture and completed a Masters at Tokyo University of the Arts Graduate School. His works are themedaround the creation of a strong sense of reality using the body as a medium. Received the French Embassy
Prize for Young Choreographer at YDC2020. Major works include "happy ice-cream" (YDC2020), "shivering
mass, loose boundary" (TPAM2020 Fringe), "blooming dots" (Toyooka Theater Festival 2020
Fringe/Contemporary Art Foundation 2020/TPAM2021 Fringe),and "Juicy" (YDC2021). Participated in APAF
twice before as APAF2018 Art Camp participant, and as scenographer for APAF2019 Exhibition"ASIA/N/ESS/ES." mumumubrothers.wixsite.com/osamu-shikichi

3Open Call Overview
This is an open call to participate in a performing arts piece (a trial creation) co-directed by Ness Roque andOsamu Shikichi.
■ Eligibility
Participants must meet all six conditions.
1. Must be based in Asia.
2. Must be aged 35 or younger (as a general rule).
3. Must be able to attend all the above dates (see p.2).
4. Must be able to cooperate with the advertisement and PR activities conducted by Tokyo Festival for theparticipant’s program.
5. Must have access to a suitable online environment that includes the following:- A secure internet connection.
- A robust internet connection able to support group video calls, video streaming, large file downloads,etc.
- A device on which the participant can use online tools such as Zoom’s video calls, Slack, or One
Drive (the tools used may vary according to participant circumstances and program content)- *System requirements for Zoom: https://support.zoom.us/hc/en-us/articles/201362023
6. We do not encourage the use of smartphones as the only device for communication.
- Participants are expected to demonstrate the following attitudes and interests:- A willingness to actively communicate in English.
- A motivation to communicate with people of different backgrounds and values, and gain new
perspectives.
- An interest in exploring and practicing communication strategies in international collaboration
settings.
- The intention to continue international activities in the performing arts after the Farm-LabExhibition.
■ Fee
Around 150,000 JPY (including tax)
■ Available Support● Japanese-English interpreters will be available throughout online and in-person rehearsals and meetings
with Japanese staff members. *Please note that there will be many instances, such as Slack messages or
everyday interactions outside of rehearsals, where interpretation will not be provided.
● The Communication Design Team will assist with facilitating collaboration in a multicultural andmultilingual setting. They will give lectures on multicultural communication, share guidelines among
participants, and provide support for any questions or concerns on the topic during the creation.
For participants living outside of Japan or the Greater Tokyo Area, we provide:● Accommodation during the length of the program (including the waiting period after arrival);● Per diem during the Tokyo residency (1,500 JPY per day; during the waiting period, your per diem will beused to provide and deliver three meals a day);● Round-trip flight tickets from your airport to Haneda or Narita Airport, round-trip shuttle between therelevant Tokyo airport and accommodation (for participants living outside of Japan only);● Round-trip travel cost between your nearest station and accommodation (for participants living in Japan,
outside of the Greater Tokyo Area only).
■ Number of Participants
Around 5 people■ Application Schedule
The participants will be selected by the directorial team, Ness Roque and Shikichi Osamu, and producer Junnosuke
Tada.
Registration

Application Deadline: Sunday, June 20, 2021 11:59 PM (JST)Registration will be available through an online form.

Initial Selection:
Application screening

Applicants will be notified of their results via email by Monday, July 5, 2021.
・The selection will be based on information provided through the application form.

Final Selection:
Interview andWorkshop Audition

Interview and audition period: Tuesday, July 6 - Monday, July 12, 2021, between 4 - 8PM (JST)・The interviews and auditions will be conducted online (via Zoom)

Results

Applicants will be notified of their results around Friday, July 16, 2021.

*All applicants will receive a notice of the result of their application via email. Please be sure to set your devices toreceive emails.
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■ How To Apply
Fill out the application from the below link.
｜Application Form: https://form.run/@fle2021[Form]*Please fill out the form in English or Japanese.
*If Japanese is your first language, please fill out the questions marked with an asterisk in both Japaneseand English (please ensure the answers are as consistent as possible in both languages).
1.

Full name or artist name- Preferred gender pronouns（he, she, they, etc.）2.
Nationality
3.
City in which you are based (if you have more than one, list them all)
4.
Your nearest airport (for overseas residents only)
5. Date of birth
6. Email address
7. Mailing address (Japanese residents only)
8. Phone number (include the country code)
9. Profession (and organizational affiliation if any)
10*. Artist bio (120 words or less in English, 300 characters or less in Japanese)
11. Artist photo (acceptable formats: jpg or png; 5MB or less)
12. Website (if any)
13. Video links (YouTube, Vimeo, etc) of artworks you participated in (if any).
- What role did you play in the creation of the artwork?
*Please apply viewing restrictions as applicable.
14*. Please tell us why you’re applying for this opportunity (150 words or less in English, 400 characters or lessin Japanese).
15*. Please tell us about something that deeply moved you recently (150 words or less in English, 300
characters or less in Japanese). Any theme or feeling is welcome.
16*. Please choose one: tell us about a project that you consider is your “best work” and why you think this is
your best work OR tell us about a project you did that you were not satisfied with and how you dealt withit (200 words or less in English, 400 characters or less in Japanese).
17. How would you best describe your English abilities? (Select from below)
a. Able to hold a basic conversation, and introduce yourself.
b. Able to explain the nature of your practice, with some preparation beforehand.
c. Able to explain views and opinions in your area of expertise, using abstract concepts.
d. Able to engage in discussion, based on c.
- Is there anything you would like to add to the above? (if any)
18. Select the equipment you plan to use during the program. (Select all that apply)*For information on the required online environment, refer to the Eligibility section of this document. (p.4)
19. The type of internet service you will be using.
20. Dates/timeframes when you are unavailable from 4 - 8 PM (JST) during the final selection period (fromTuesday, July 6 to Monday, July 12), if any.
*Please be sure to list all dates in JST
21. Other Tokyo Festival Farm programs you plan to apply to (if any/select from below).
*Applicants may apply to other Farm programs conducting open calls within the same period.
22. For artists under the age of 29 and residing in Japan - Do you want to apply to the Young Farmers Forumas well as the Camp? (Applicants of the Camp program will be exempted from any application paperwork
for the Young Farmers Forum open call).
(For more details, see Young Farmers Forum Open Call : https://tokyo-festival.jp/2020/program/farm2021/ )23. Any other information you wish to relay.
■ All personal information will be kept strictly confidential and will only be used for the purpose of contacting theapplicant for the purpose of this program.
［Inquiries］ APAF Office Email: apaf@tokyo-festival.jp
Phone: +81(0)3-4213-4293 (Open weekdays from 10 AM – 7 PM JST)*All information listed in the above form is current as of June 1, 2021, and is subject to change.

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From APAF to Tokyo Festival Farm
We are pleased to announce that APAF (Asian Performing Arts Farm) will transform into the new Tokyo Festival Farm.
While the former served as a Tokyo Festival initiative to nurture talent and create a network for emerging Asian artists tocollaborate and experiment together–beyond stylistic, national or cultural boundaries–the latter integrates research,development, and educational programs previously run by Tokyo Festival and Festival/Tokyo and seeks to broaden andelevate its overall vision.
This year, two directors will lead the new initiative. APAF’s Junnosuke Tada will continue to serve as Director alongwith Kaku Nagashima, newly appointed as Co-Director. We will establish guidelines based on the Communication Designposition introduced in APAF2020, and are fully committed to promoting meaningful communication based on respect forothers, and creating a harassment-free environment that allows individuals to freely explore their creativity.
The performing arts have transcended borders and brought people with different backgrounds together. With
developments in communication and transportation, globalization has made the lives of others more familiar. Today, we live
in an increasingly transcultural and transdisciplinary environment, in which frameworks such as nationality, ethnicity, andlanguage begin to dissolve and diverse individuals move across various fields.
At present, the word “international” refers to “the mixing of previously distinct cultures” and “circulating outside ofthe country,” but in future the meaning will likely shift towards indicating “the values of our complex world where different
elements are constantly mixing with one another.” We are also seeing the role of the performing arts, a mirror that reflects
our world, transform.
As an international initiative to nurture young talent, Tokyo Festival Farm’s mission is to offer an opportunity forartists to experience firsthand a transcultural and transdisciplinary environment that dissolves borders and allows them toencounter diverse values, with the aim of strengthening their ability to make sense of our increasingly complex world; toproduce professionals who transcend nations and cultures in their interdisciplinary work; and to provide a sustainable platform
to maintain and achieve the above. We believe this endeavor has the power to resist the emerging waves of division that
accompany increasing diversification around the world.
We hope you’ll continue to support our renewed and transformed performing arts Farm into the future.

Tokyo Festival Farm 2021 Theme: Why Cities?
Last year, under the theme “Anti-Body Experiment,” APAF2020 reassessed the potential of the online world andphysical bodies, experimenting with developing resistance against “not being able to gather.” For this year’s Tokyo Festival
Farm 2021, we propose the theme “Why Cities?” in consideration of the variety around the world regarding COVID-19
infections, from spread to containment. We question our metropolitan ways of life, each of which has distinct regional andnational characteristics while addressing the common issues of economics, efficiency, consumption, and production. Howwill things change in the future, and what will remain the same? How will those changes affect each or all of us? Who gets todecide our values, fluctuating as they do with scale and distance? For the full range of people involved in this initiative, both
Farm participants and audience members alike, we offer this as a prompt for collective thought.
June 2021
Junnosuke Tada, Tokyo Festival Farm DirectorAbout Tokyo Festival FarmTokyo Festival Farm is a new framework that brings together all development initiatives within Tokyo Festival, a festival forperforming arts. It was created by combining Asian Performing Arts Farm (APAF), a platform promoting exchange and growthamong young artists in Asia, with Festival/Tokyo (F/T)’s Research Program and Education & Outreach Program . There are three
categories: “School,” a place to meet and learn, “Internship,” an on-site training opportunity, and “Lab,” for exploring researchand development. By having this range of programs based around open calls and developing a collaborative interdisciplinary andinterregional approach, Tokyo Festival Farm aims to foster professionals capable of free movement across all kinds of borders,which will become increasingly fluid in the future.
Refer to the Tokyo Festival Website for further details https://tokyo-festival.jp/2020/en/program/farm2021/