TOKYO FESTIVAL 2000
 At the end of year 2000, of the 1-st. In September on December 3, took place the first Festival Of Theater
of the city of Tokyo
 This Festival had for name: “Sen-nenn Bunka Geijutu Sai”
That one could about translate by:
" Millenium Festival of the Arts of the Theater "
This Festival of Theater was a part of a set of demonstrations wider grouped together under the generic name of " Tokyo Festival 2000 ".  On the whole, more than hundred demonstrations took place during this festival.
 At the level of the theater, thirty companies were registered on the program of this festival to present their spectacles to the public of Tokyo. Spectacles of theater, dance, puppets and performances.

This festival contained several peculiarities.
On one hand it was about a festival subsidized by the city of Tokyo and the company sponsor of the demonstration. Among these thirty companies twelve were retained and rewarded for the interest and the quality of their artistic performances.
Among these twelve companies was chosen a first prize which was awarded to Cie. of dance " Strange Kinoko Dance Company " - (in Japanese: Mezurashii Kinoko Buyo-dan... The Company of the Strange Mushroom.)
This first prize consists of the participation of the company in the Festival of Avignon Off 2001 to the Theater Le Funambule, participation offered by the municipality of Tokyo and the company sponsor, organized by the Agency " MEDIA WAVE " and overseen by the company of artistic productions " Craftarts Co. "

On the other hand this festival, without discrimination of fame or genre, allowed to these companies to present styles of very different spectacles going from more classic forms until the performance by mixing confirmed companies and companies in future. To finish, this festival sought the public in a active way. Indeed, at the beginning of every representation a form consisted of some pages was handed to the spectators who should then hand it to the organizers at the end of spectacle having filled it. This form allowed to every spectator to give its opinion onto the spectacle that it had just just seen, to give its appreciation onto the artistic plan and to announce in some lines of its feelings and spectator's impressions. After perusal these forms were taken into account to participate in the final choice of the prize-winners. Among the spectators had been chosen a not professional of spectacle pannel of 150 persons which empaneled the Special Jury of the spectators and which had for mission to see all the spectacles. This principle seemed to us all the more interesting that the public widely answered this request. Beautiful experience that should maybe follow in France a certain category of decision-makers and programming-managers persuaded to know " in priori " the taste of the public without not asking him for all that ever really for its opinion...

In December 16, 2000
city hall of Tokyo
Pricegiving of the first festival of theater of Tokyo

" Millenium Festival of the Arts of the Theater "
fact left the 116 projects of
“Festival Tokyo 2000”
among which 15 were organized by the city of Tokyo
and 101 supported by the city of Tokyo
The Festival was under the responsibility of
" Executive committee of the Festival Tokyo 2000 "

Co-workers for the Theater
“MEDIAWAVE”
“CRAFTARTS CO”

Financing
“Nihon Jiin Kabushiki-gaisha”
( Corporation of Undertaker's)

(  It is not a joke joke, if in France the survival of the theatrical creation is more and more precarious and difficult in Japan it is the Undertaker's which by their subsidies help to dig up the young talents...)
We thank all those who welcomed us warmly during our stay in the festival:

THE CITY OF TOKYO

TOKYU AGENCY ( advertising agency)
Mr Tsuneo FUJII
Mr Tetsutoshi WATANABE
Mr Yoshikazu KANEKO

MEDIA WAVE
Mr Yoshikuni TAKI
Miss Sachie YOSHIDA

CRAFTARTS CO
Mr Akira ISHIGAKI
Mr Tetsuo SHOJI
Mr Yasuo OZAWA
Miss Yoshino YOSHIKAWA

Miss Kana NAKAJIMA (interpreter)
A. Igonet - Programmateur - Théâtre Le Funambule -