Yoko Nishiyama
Kobe, Japan
After working in 22 countries for international productions by Japanese Playwright Oriza Hirata and his theater company Seinendan for 10 years, Yoko started to work in the Japan Foundation for the aim of supporting more artists in the next generation mainly in East Asian and Pacific countries to generate more exchange among regions since 2015.
While working in Seinendan, she was also appointed to work as a program director of Kinosaki International Arts Center, a newly opened artists in residence center specialized for performing arts creation which is located in West of Japan in 2013. It has been focusing on the community engagement between the international artists and local residents, as well as the creative process of the new work in long term.
From 2018, she started to work as an independent producer and change the focus on supporting the personal skill up of the Arts managers. She established the Yoko Foundation, an organization which drive the grant program for the mobility, just like she was in charge when she was in the Japan Foundation but she challenges it personally.
She participated in Asian Producers’ Platform Camp from in 2014 and 2016 ( and 2015 as a member of planning team) as well as Global Cultural Leadership Program initiated by EU Commission in 2016, Art Right Justice Academy held in Hildesheim University, the UNESCO chair, as a grantee of “Mobility First!” by ASEF and International Society for the Performing Arts as a Global Fellowship winner 2019.