Since first being staged in 1962, World Theatre Day has been celebrated throughout the globe on March 27th. A platform for creativity and authenticity, World Theatre Day champions the people and organisations who have the vision and who make it manifest across all theatre forms and genres while encouraging the public and government to participate.
The focal point of our celebrations is the Awards and the World Theatre Day Message:
World Theatre Day Message 2014 by Brett Bailey - playwright, artist, designer, play director, festival curator and the artistic director of the group Third World Bun Fight.
We are delighted to invite you to join us in celebrating theatre and the performing arts while promoting universal harmony through global collaboration on this day and on every other day.
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World Theatre Day was initiated by the International Theatre Institute in 1961and is celebrated every year on March 27th. The day is a global celebration of the importance of theatre as an art form and promotes the value of theatre both culturally and economically to governments, institutions and the public. Participation is actively encouraged with unique performances, special awards, the World Theatre Day Message and the media all playing a key role on one of the most culturally significant days in the calendar.
The goals of World Theatre Day are:
First delivered by Jean Cocteau in 1962 and every year since, an outstanding person from or an influential supporter of the theatre and arts community is invited to publicly reflect on theatre and international harmony. The Message is translated into more than 50 languages and read for tens of thousands of spectators before performances in theatres throughout the world. The Message appears across hundreds of television, print and radio outlets and is shared significantly across social media.
The full list of World Theatre Day Message authors is:-
The message was delivered on World Theatre Day inside Wellington Arch, the iconic landmark in the heart of London.
Printed copies are available from us in London in English and French and the full message will be available to download here in over 40 languages.
The message author of 2017 is the acclaimed theatre and cinema actress, Isabelle Huppert from France, who delivered it at UNESCO in Paris on March 27th.
The World Theatre Day Message 2017 was read out simultaneously in London at The Dorchester by the actress Noma Dumezweni alongside the presentation of the Awards for Excellence in International Theatre and Dance.
Over 100 influential long standing supporters of the theatre, dance and Arts community joined our celebrations including Wayne Sleep, Sir Matthew Bourne, Gillian Lynne, Robert Powell and Arlene Phillips.
Printed copies are available from us in London in English and French and the full message is available to download in over 40 languages.
We are delighted to announce that the Award winners for 2018 are:
The Awards will be presented at a special ceremony on World Theatre Day inside one of the most iconic London landmarks, Wellington Arch, where the World Theatre Day Message will also be delivered.
In 2017, alongside the two special awards for Excellence in International Theatre and Excellence in International Dance, the International Institute of Dance and Theatre presented the inaugural Trailblazer in Dance and Theatre Award at the Dorchester in London as a focal part of our World Theatre Day celebrations.
The winners were:
For more information on the events running throughout 2018 please email events@worldtheatreday.com
Inaugurated in 1982, International Dance Day is celebrated globally on April 29th and is celebrated by all UN member states with the main purpose being to attract the attention of the wider public to the art of dance.
This Author of this year’s message is Trisha Brown, US born dancer, choreographer and artistic director of the Trisha Brown Company. One of the most influential and acclaimed choreographers of modern times, it is with great sadness to all that new her and her work that we have to inform those that don’t already know that Trisha died on March 18th after a lengthy illness. She will never be forgotten by lovers of dance and her legacy will continue to influence future generations.
“I became a dancer because of my desire to fly. The transcendence of gravity was always something that moved me. There is no secret meaning in my dances. They are a spiritual exercise in a physical form.
Dance communicates and expands the universal language of communication, giving birth to joy, beauty and the advancement of human knowledge. Dance is about creativity…again and again…in the thinking, in the making, in the doing, and in the performing. Our bodies are a tool for expression and not a medium for representation. This notion liberates our creativity, which is the essential lesson and gift of art-making.
The life of an artist does not end with age, as some critics believe. Dance is made of people, people and ideas. As an audience, you can take the creative impulse home with you and apply it to your daily life.”
Trisha Brown
Follow the full global celebration at www.internationaldanceday.org which is launching soon. Until then please enjoy the wonderful 2013 International Dance Day Message from Lin Hwai-min, a Taiwanese dancer, writer, choreographer, and founder of the Cloud Gate Dance Theatre of Taiwan.
The world of Theatre is a wonderful place with many great organizations supporting the industry, fostering collaborations and encouraging audiences including:-