DANCE BOX Artist in Residence Program 2026
NPO DANCE BOX
Funding
¥300,500 Total Stipend
Opens
8 June 2026
Deadline
3 July 2026
Location
Kobe, Global
Entry Fee
Free
Travel Support
Yes — Accommodation + Travel
About
A one-month research-based residency in Kobe, Japan for performing arts artists living outside Japan, exploring cultural transformation and archiving.
DANCE BOX Artist in Residence Program 2026 is a research-based international residency hosted at ArtTheater dB KOBE in Shin-Nagata, Kobe, Japan. Each year the programme invites overseas artists to spend around one month in deep, place-based research and creation.
For 2026 the theme is 'Cultural transformation and archiving in the movement of art and folk performing arts'. Artists are invited to use the month-long residency to explore how cultural practices shift, travel, and are preserved as they cross borders and communities.
Residency period: 1–30 November 2026
Applications open: 8 June – 3 July 2026
Who can apply?
The programme is open to artists working in any genre of performing arts who are:
- Living outside Japan
- Not Japanese nationals
Researchers engaged in performing arts-related inquiry are also eligible, in keeping with the programme's conceptual focus. Outcomes from the residency are expected to take a tangible form — such as a ZINE or similar publication — alongside any performance or installation work.
The 2026 programme also features a returning presentation by Im Chiae and Cho Hyemi, whose collaborative work exploring Korean performing arts traditions among Zainichi Korean communities in Japan will culminate in a performance at ArtTheater dB KOBE in March 2027.
DANCE BOX is a performing arts centre and NPO based in the Shin-Nagata neighbourhood of Kobe, committed to fostering artistic exchange between Japan and the wider world.