On the afternoon of May 18, 2014, the 1st World Theatre Education Convention with the 3rd Asia Theatre Schools Festival was kicked off in the Experimental Theatre of the Central Academy of Drama, China (CAD). The event was co-held by ATEC and the Department of Physical Health and Arts Education of the Ministry of Education of PRC, and organized by CAD. It was supported by International Theatre Institute (ITI), International Federation for Theatre Research (IFTR) and International Association of Theatre Critic (IATC). Attendees to the opening ceremony include guests from all circles and places, as well as the teachers and students from the 15 member schools, namely the Central Academy of Drama (China), Nihon University College of Arts (Japan), Chung-Ang University (Korea), Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts (Singapore), National Academy of Chinese Theatre Arts (China), Shanghai Theatre Academy (China), the Hongkong Academy for Performing Arts (China), Uzbekistan State Institute of Arts (Uzbekistan), Chungwoon University (Korea), Hanoi Academy of Theatre and Cinema (Vietnam), Toho Gakuen College of Drama and Music (Japan), SeoKyeong University (Korea), Universidad del Valle (Colombia), Mongolian State University of Arts and Culture (Mongolia), and College of Fine Arts, University of New Mexico (USA). The ceremony was hosted by Prof Liu Libin, the Vice Director-General of ATEC.
After the wonderful performances by the CAD students, several representatives of both Chinese and international organizations delivered their speeches. Director Wang Dengfeng of the Department of Physical Health and Arts Education expressed that it was the Department’s responsibility and the common concern of theatre educators around the world to promote the prosperity of theatre education; that the forum, themed as “Today’s Asia: Theatre Education in the 21st Century”, would invite constructive opinions for this course. ITI Director-General, Mr. Tobias Biancone, accentuated the role of theoretical research and innovation in theatre, and the importance of cross-cultural exchanges. Director-General Xu Xiang of ATEC extended warm welcome to all the participants, before he extended his wish of seeing more inclusive discussions about theatre and better combination of national and foreign cultures.
Prof Liu Libin then officially declared open the event, followed by a keynote speech by President Kim Yun-Cheol of IATC. He introduced the evolution of Korean National University of the Arts, where he served as a professor, and then pointed out that the priority of theatrical training was to cultivate the students’ ability to express their emotions with both actions and spoken languages in their distinctive cultural forms. He also called for novel educational models that should be interdisciplinary and student-centred.
President Christopher Balme of IFTR then gave another keynote speech titled “Asian Theatre and Globalization from Historical Perspective”. He believed that globalization enhanced the integration and the inclusiveness of various traditional cultures, and that theatrical practitioners, educators and students were the best beneficiaries of such standardization originated from diversification.
