Call for Performers! "STIM – KIZUNA" (tentative title) by Shahrzad Malekian and Ida Uvaas

We are currently looking for physical performers to collaborate on a new performance work by Shahrzad Malekian and Ida Uvaas, to be presented in the Ebihara Shoten building as part of the Tokyo Biennale 2025.

Held every two years, the Tokyo Biennale is an international art festival that sets the city of Tokyo as its main stage. The festival aims to dig deep into the city, as it is created together with the area’s local citizens, as well as a wide variety of artists and creators from around the world.

The performance is organized by artists Shahrzad Malekian and Ida Uvaas, whose interdisciplinary practices span visual and performing arts, with a strong emphasis on interventions in public space.

Titled STIM – Kizuna (tentative title), this work is developed site-specifically in and around the venue EBIHARA SHOTEN, weaving together layers of memory, movement, and urban transformation found within the city.

STIM is a living, site-responsive, and context-specific choreographic organism. Conceived as a long-term collaboration between Malekian and Uvaas, it unfolds through a flexible score that adapts to each new site. Rooted in a choreographic inquiry into time, memory, belonging, and spatial narratives, the work approaches public space as a layered and contested terrain—where movement becomes a mode of listening, tracing, and reimagining.

This version, STIM – Kizuna,  resonates with the Biennale’s curatorial theme “Wander for Wonder”—an invitation to walk, wander, and re-see the city. In a time when urban life is increasingly confined by space and time, the act of walking offers both freedom and presence—a way to traverse history, drift between the everyday and the extraordinary, and rediscover one’s relationship to place.

Participation Requirements

• Artists based in Tokyo with an interest in physical acting, dance, or performance.
• Experience in at least one of these fields is preferred.

Number of Participants

• Up to 10 performers

Language

• The main language of the process will be English. Understanding English is advantageous but not required. Simple interpretation support will be provided as needed.

Schedule (tentative)

• September 11 – Application deadline (23:59 JST)
• September 20 – October 5 – Pre-project online meetings to discuss the project and rehearsal plan
• October 7 – October 26 – Rehearsals and performance
• October 11 – October 23, 2–3 times per week, 18:00–21:00/ Additional rehearsals on October 12 and 19 (Sundays), 10:00–15:00
• October 24 (Fri) – Evening performance
• October 25 or 26– Day-time performanceNote:
• Total commitment: approximately 42 hours (including the performance)
• Rehearsals and performances will be documented via photo and video
• Final performances will be publicly presented as part of Tokyo Biennale 2025 at Ebihara Shoten
• Each participant will receive 2,500 NOK (approx. 35,000 JPY) after the official performance

Required Documents

• Curriculum vitae or bio note (Word or PDF)
• Portfolio of works or past performances (optional)
• Motivation letter (max. A4 1page,  Word or PDF)
• Portrait photo (for social media, brochures, and publicity)

How to apply

Please prepare the required documents and submit your application using the following form:

https://forms.gle/tTJDgd3ctGswcvpUA

Application Deadline

Thursday, September 11, 23:59 (JST)

Artists

Ida Uvaas
A movement artist exploring mobility across body, mind, and society. Through interdisciplinary, participatory works, she challenges structures and invites collective experiences across performance, visual art, and site-specific practices. @idauvaas

Shahrzad Malekian
An interdisciplinary artist working across performance, video, and sculpture, they use play to explore power, resistance, and care within public spaces and institutions. Recent exhibitions include SACO Biennial (2025) and Singapore Art Museum (2024).