In order to promote the prosperity of modern dramatic arts, identify and cultivate young stage design talents of high caliber from Shanghai and country-wide, establish the exchange and interaction platform with Shanghai as the cover to serve the whole country and promote the healthy development of a conducive environment for the theoretical studies and creative production of modern stage design, the Shanghai Theatre Academy (STA) continued to work together with the China Theatre Association and Shanghai Federation of Literary and Art Circles in holding the China Youth Stage Designer Advanced Studies Program.
The opening ceremony of the program was held at STA’s New Space Theatre. Leaders of the China Theatre Association, Publicity Department of CPC Shanghai Municipal Committee, Shanghai Association of Literary and Art Circles and China Stage Design Society attended the opening ceremony together with leaders of STA.
This year’s program continued to receive the strong support of the Publicity Department of CPC Shanghai Municipal Committee and Shanghai Cultural Development Foundation. Over the four consecutive years from 2011 to 20144, STA has successfully held the China Youth Playwright Advanced Studies Program, China Young Director Advanced Studies Program, China Young Traditional Opera Musician Advanced Studies Program and China Young Theatre Critic Advanced Studies Program. All these previous programs were productive, impactful and highly recognized by the society. The model of these advanced studies programs for young theatre artists has attracted the great attention of the leaders of the Publicity Department of CPC Central Committee, China Federation of Literary and Art Circles and Ministry of Culture, and generated wide recognition in China’s theatrical circles.
The program this year enrolls 64 participants who are at an average age of 38. They are stage design practitioners from the theatre companies and high education institutions in over 30 provinces, municipalities and autonomous regions across the county including one from Taiwan and one from Macau. 16 of them hold master degree qualification or above, and 8 of them hold senior professional titles at associate professor or above. All participants are of high caliber and many of them have achieved a modicum of success in stage design creation and become quite well-known in this profession.
