Festival Overview
Kyoto Experiment:
Kyoto International Performing Arts Festival 2026
Dates☞ October3th (Sat) – October 25th (Sun) 2026 [23 days]
Venues:☞ ROHM Theatre Kyoto, KYOTO ART CENTER, Kyoto Art Theater Shunjuza, THEATRE E9 KYOTO and other locations
Organized by
Kyoto International Performing Arts Festival Executive Committee [City of Kyoto, ROHM Theatre Kyoto (Kyoto City Music Art Cultural Promoting Foundation), KYOTO ART CENTER (Kyoto Arts and Culture Foundation), Kyoto Performing Arts Center at Kyoto University of the Arts, THEATRE E9 KYOTO (Arts Seed Kyoto)]
General Incorporated Association Kyoto Experiment
Kyoto Experiment?
Kyoto Experiment is a performing arts festival held in Kyoto since 2010. Dedicated to producing and presenting experimental performing arts—both from Japan and overseas— the festival aims to explore and create new dialogues and values in society. Featuring experimental works that move freely between genres such as theater, dance, music and fine art, the festival hopes to open up new possibilities through the creations, experiences, and ideas that emerge from such a diverse combination.
The festival consists of three programs: “Kansai Studies,” a program that researches the Kansai region, where the festival is rooted, and aims to cultivate a foundation for future creation; “Shows,” a lineup of experimental performing arts and exhibitions from around the world; and “Super Knowledge for the Future [SKF],” a series of talks and workshops that explore the relationship between experimental performing arts and all kinds of different topics beyond the world of art.
Co-Artistic Directors
Yoko Kawasaki, Yuya Tsukahara
Photo by Wichaya Artamat
Yoko Kawasaki
After working at CAN Inc. and as an art coordinator for Kyoto Art Center from 2011-2014, she was a fellow for the Program of Overseas Study by the Agency for Cultural Affairs of Japan and studied at HAU Hebbel am Ufer in Berlin. In recent years she has planned and produced interdisciplinary performing arts projects. She has been involved as production coordinator at Kyoto Experiment since 2011 and is co-director since 2020.
Yuya Tsukahara
After graduating with a master’s degree in Aesthetics and Art Studies from Kwansei Gakuin University, he joined NPO DANCEBOX as a volunteer and later became a staff member. In 2006, he began activities as an artist as a member of the performance group contact Gonzo. In 2020, he received the Best staff award at the Yomiuri Theater Awards for his scenography and choreography in the theater work Pratthana – A Portrait of Possession. Since 2020 he is also a part-time lecturer at the Department of Sculpture at Kyoto City University of Arts.