A new award granted by FITS in the Yokohama Dance Collection

In this edition of Yokohama Dance Collection, the Sibiu International Theatre Festival (FITS) award was granted to Ryu Suzuki, dancer and choreographer, who has proven his mastery of gesture and corporeality in a minimalist performance and has set himself apart by his wholehearted involvement in the performance. Ryu has also been distinguished with the MASDANZA Award and the French Embassy Award for Young Choreographers.

The FITS Award consists of an invitation extended to the choreographer to include the winning performance in the programme of the 25th edition of FITS, which will take place between 8-17 June 2018.
This is the third award that the Sibiu International Theatre Festival has granted to Japanese choreographers. The first was awarded to dancer Yo Nakamura in 2013 and the other two were granted to Naoto Katori and Ikumi Kuroso in 2015, the latter also receiving the Excellence Award in the Yokohama Dance Collection.

Yokohama Dance Collection (YDC) is a platform that aims to discover young choreographers, to emphasize the dialogue between artists and to promote contemporary dance. The value of this event lies in the uniqueness of the choreographers and the relationship between the artist and his/her corporeality. YDC celebrates 22 years of existence being active since 1996. The event is held each year at Red Brick Warehouse and it involves the organization of two competitions:
Competition I is addressed to candidates who must have presented their first performance more than 15 years ago. After reviewing the video materials and after going through the documentation, 10 finalists were selected out of 138 candidates from 11 countries. Ryu Suzuki was granted the SITF award in this category. Competition II is destined for young choreographers, including early stage performers, with 12 remaining finalists out of 36 candidates.