INTERNATIONAL THEATRE INSTITUTE
In our capacity as the U.S. Center of the International Theatre Institute (ITI), TCG supports cross-cultural exchange and provides assistance to traveling theatre professionals. ITI was founded by UNESCO in the aftermath of World War II to support the ideal of theatre without borders: to protect the rights of theatre artists around the world and to insure their right to communicate. Today the ITI network includes 90 national centers on six continents. TCG is honored to have served as the U.S. Center since 1999 and ITI's mission to encourage exchange and cooperation between theatre artists all over the world to promote mutual understanding and peaceful coexistence ideally complements TCG's own mission to strengthen, nurture and promote the professional not-for-profit American theatre.
Joan Channick, deputy director of TCG and director of ITI/U.S., serves on the executive board of ITI, giving the U.S. a major role in governing the central organization. ITI highlights in 2004-2005 included:
- Then Secretary of State Colin Powell appointed TCG to serve on the U.S. National Commission for UNESCO.
- The 2004 Uchimura Prize (awarded by the Japanese Center of ITI to an artist outside of Japan who promotes Japanese theatre) was presented to Dawn Akemi Saito from the United States, for her theatre work reflecting facets of Japanese culture, history, and art.
- Twenty-five international artists attended the TCG National Conference in Seattle.
- TCG coordinated the creation and development of the U.S. portion of a new international collaborative work to be presented at the 2006 ITI World Congress in Manila, Philippines. Eight countries—Belgium, Cameroon, Croatia, Germany, Japan, Philippines, Switzerland and the United States —are each developing a 15-minute piece based on the Jorge Luis Borges story "Las Ruinas Circulares" (The Circular Ruins), which will be compiled into a diverse, globally resonant performance in Manila.
ITI's spirit of internationalism is fully embodied in everything we do at TCG, from our publications to our grantmaking programs to our advocacy activities. American Theatre features a monthly "Global Spotlight" column, and now as an annual tradition, the May/June issue previews theatre festivals worldwide and features articles by theatre artists working internationally. With support from the Trust for Mutual Understanding, we continue to offer TCG/ITI Travel Grants to support travel in both directions for theatre practitioners in the U.S. and their counterparts in Russia and Central/Eastern Europe. In 2004-2005 we launched a new international fellowship program as part of our New Generations grant program, and we continue to seek ways to expand our international grantmaking programs. We provide support letters for theatres seeking visas to bring foreign guest artists to the United States, and advocate for less restrictive federal policies regarding international artist exchange.