Executive Committee Meeting - Tokyo, Japan - July 19-24 2001

Present Harold Oaks USA President Wolfgang Schneider Germany Vice President Kim Woo-ok Korea Vice President Kim van der Boon The Netherlands Vice President Vicky Ireland Great Britain Treasurer Niclas Malmcrona Sweden Secretary General Alison Turner Canada Executive Assistant Ivica Simic Croatia Helge Anderson Norway Remi Boucher Canada Yoshishige Kagawa Japan Jan Skotnicki Poland Lou Westbury Australia Hagit Rehavi Nikolayevsky Israel Tisa Chifunyise Zimbabwe Eckhard Mittelstädt Germany Counsellor Michael FitzGerald Australia Honorary President`s Award Jury Member 1. Harold Oaks opened the meeting extending the EC`s gratitude to ASSITEJ Japan for their efforts and generosity. 2. Apologies Louiza Monteiro (Brazil), Peter Rinderknecht (Switzerland), Jackson Ndawula (Uganda), Galina Kolosova (Russia) and Peter Manscher (Denmark) sent their apologies. 3. Bureau Meeting Members of he bureau reported that there were no major changes or additions to be made to the agenda. 4. Rewiew of the agenda Kim van dr Boon asked if a discussion of Jan Skotnicki`s letter – mentioned in the minutes from Harare – could be added to the agenda. This topic was added as point D in item 19 of the agenda of these meetings. The agenda was adopted. 5. Adoption of the minutes from Harare Kim Wo-Ok said that the 18 individual members noted on page 2 of the enclosures needs to be changed to 80. 6. Business arising from the minutes No business arising. 7. President`s Report See enclosed There was a discussion of the letter Harold Oaks wrote to Maurice Yendt concerning the relationship and future of ASSITEJ France and ASSITEJ International. Harold Oaks is optimistic that this letter is a positive step towards ensuring the presence and participation of ASSITEJ France at the 2002 Congress in Seoul. 8. From the General Secretariat See enclosed a) Secretary General´s report Website Secretary General Niclas Malmcrona said that the new format for the website would be ready very soon. Any comments or necessary corrections may be sent to Peter Manscher in Denmark or to Niclas Malmcrona. Funding of the General Secretariat Finland will no longer be contributing to the funding of the General Secretariat. For the remaining portion of the current term, ASSITEJ Sweden will cover the remaining amount. Kim van der Boon asked if it is possible for ASSITEJ International to be involved with regards to financing the Secretary General. Niclas said that it is not necessary at this point in time because the matter has already been dealt with. He will however submit a copy of the General Secretariat`s financial report to treasurer, Vicky Ireland. b) Contacts with center The number of centres communicating with the General Secretariat and using the web-site and Newsletter is still a matter of concern to the General Secretariat. c) Contacts with non-members countries The General Secretariat has been in contact with numerous countries, organisations and individuals concerning ASSITEJ: Nepal, Colombia, Indonesia, Bangladesh and Armenia to mention some. d) Membership applications Cameroun has submitted an application for membership. Niclas met Etoundi Zeyang from Cameroun in Sweden and was impressed with what he heard. He is arranging travels to Cameroun in December to meet the applicants and provide them with more information about ASSITEJ as an organization. Tisa Chifunyise added that ASSITEJ Zimbabwe is pleased to have new contact with Cameroun and are excited about this new relationship. Lithuania has submitted an application for membership. Niclas has heard very positive reports about the work for children`s theatre that is being done there, and will be meeting with the applicants in September. Jan Skotnicki said that he has much contact with Lithuanian companies and confirmed the quality of their work. Cameroun and Lithuania were endorsed as full memers. 9. Financial Report See enclosed Members of the EC in touch with colleagues from centers which have not yet submitted their payments for 2001 offered to investigate the circumstances and reasons as to why this is the case. Vicky Ireland added that many efforts have been made to contact all centers – written correspondence, telephone calls and e-mails when possible. 10. Presentation of the new Annual Wolfgang Schneider summarized the content of the new Annual and explained its distribution. Every center will receive two copies. Additional copies may be ordered by following a link on the website (coming soon), or by submitting an order form (which the General Secretariat will be sending out to all centers soon). The German center will also be creating a brochure advertising all three issues which will contain an order form. These will be ready by August. The purchase prices for the annual are as follows: One single copy $10US All three issues $20US 10 copies $70US 50+ copies $250US 100+ copies $400US Wolfgang Schneider encouraged EC members to raise awarness about the Annual at any functions where they are functioning as ambassadors of ASSITEJ International. Brochures which can be distributed will be available from ASSITEJ Germany. Wolfgang Schneider also suggested a consignment system for distributing the annual which would involve making the annual available through/at relevant organizations (theatres, schools, etc.). 11. Report of Partnership System Scandinavia & the Baltic Countries The last Nordic festival for children and young people in Falun and Borlänge in Sweden in May was able to invite representatives from all the Baltic countries. Niclas Malmcrona remarked that over the last ten years the theatre for young people in these countries has seen much growth and development. This presents a new question to deal with in terms of where to proceed in the relationship between the countries, as they are now operating on similar planes with one another. USA & Venezuela Harold Oaks said that his efforts towards making contact with the ASSITEJ centre in Venezuela have not been successful, and will put out a general request to all US ASSITEJ members for assistance. Wolfgang Schneider suggested that perhaps ASSITEJ International could assist the South American countries in ways that will lead to more regional communications and cooperations. There is a need to establish a network within the region. Harold Oaks noted that though leadership towards these ends can not come from beyond the region itself, ASSITEJ International can certainly be involved in any efforts towards facilitating such ends. Korea Kim Woo-ok was in China last week – a meeting arranged through a man that he met at the festival in Sweden in May. He said this is a very positive step towards enduring Chinese participation in the 2002 Congress. Kim Woo-ok chose one production to invite to Seoul, and met with Chinese government officials to confirm that they will provide the funds to make it possible. He is very optimistic about the possibility of Chinese involvement. Japan & Asian Countries Had meetings with Korea in March this year, but beyond that they have no news. Germany & Switzerland The German and Swiss ASSITEJ centres have organized a conference together. There was a festival in Berlin in May, and Baden in the middle of May. Wolfgang Schneider reported that Switzerland currently enjoys an interesting landscape for children`s theatre. Germany & Russia Jörgen Flügge, former member of the EC is working in Rostov-on-Don. There will be a meeting at the end of October with participants from all areas of artistic work. From this they will produce a publication about children`s theatre in Russia and Germany. There are also efforts towards creating a festival in May 2003, and a co-production between Berlin and St Petersburg. Germany & Uzbekistan The German and Russian centres have had much interaction lately, and have an invitation for a director in Tashkent. Members of the artistic communities of Dresden and Tashkent have initiated their own collaborations, and ASSITEJ is pleased to step back and see the artists working together as a result of their own iniatives. Croatia & Slovenia Croatia and Slovenia are collaborating on the 2002 Milk Tooth Festival. Currently there is only one theatre for children in Slovenia. ASSITEJ Croatia are involved in connecting Zagreb and Lubjana. Ivica Simic mentioned an idea for a festival with the countries connected by the Danube, but is having trouble establishing connections between the Ukraine, Slovakia and Serbia. He is hoping that a contact in Hungary may be able to assist in making these efforts more fruitful. There is now a Japanese office in Shibinik, so Japanese interested in performing at the festival there may find it a bit easier. Australia Members in Australia are contemplating the possibility of introducing a Pacific Rim festival and an Indian Rim festival. The Netherlands Kim van der Boon and Louiza Monteiro have arranged for Kim to do a workshop in Brazil. Israel Most of their projects have been abandoned at the momet due to financial constraints. There is however a possibility for a partnership with some people in Tel Aviv and Los Angeles. Work towards a middle eastern festival is on hold for the time being. Zimbabwe There will be a festival in Zimbabwe from August 1-3 involving African countries that are not yet member centres. ASSITEJ Zimbabwe and their colleagues do not have the resources necessary to establish regional cooperation and feel that they will need further assistance. As a continuation of the meetings in Harare, Sweden is working with people in southern Africa to organize another meeting. Canada Remi Boucher has met many people from ASSITEJ in countries throughout Europe and has a lot of good work, some of which will be invited to the festival in Montreal. He was also able to attend the International Director`s Seminar in Nuremburg and thought it was a wonderful experience. Two weeks ago there was a meeting in Montreal with representatives from all of the Canadian children`s theatre festivals during which they discussed working together and arrived at a proposal to host the congress in 2005, in Montreal. They will meet again before the Congress in Seoul. Remi Boucher was successful in getting some money for ASSITEJ Canada from the Quebec government. Tamara Huggan, who did an internship with ASSITEJ Germany, will be working as an intern for Remi Boucher`s festival as part of her masters degree in arts and cultural management. 12. Report from ASSITEJ meeting in Seoul, March 2001 The Asian meeting took place in Seoul in March, 2001. The topic of the meeting was ”What is the importance of tradition to the theatre for children and young people in your country? How has tradition been utilized in the theatre for children and young people in your country?” and the meeting also gave opportunity to celebrate the first Theatre for Children and Young People World Day and to meet representatives from Asian ASSITEJ countries; Korea, Japan, Phillipines, Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia and Sri Lanka. Due to difficulties with communications between countries, they were not able to have representatives from all 12 of the desired nations – Vietnam, Brunei, India and China were not able to attend. During the three days of meeting, Kim Woo-ok urged them to participate in the 2002 congress in Seoul, and he is very enthusiastic about continuing with the Asian meetings. 13. Report on the 1st Theatre for Children and Young People World Day: March 20, 2001 (additional reports may be found in the last issue of the ASSITEJ International Newsletter) Zimbabwe Tisa Chifunyise reported that celebrations in Harare were on the 18th of March in one of the high density communities. The festivities started at 9:00 am with a procession through the area with singing, dancing and drumming, and lasted well into the afternoon. There was also a celebration on the 20th in Harare. Latvia Helge Anderson reported that in Latvia a festival was organized around the World Day. Norway Helge Anderson reported that in Oslo a free performance was given in one of the multicultural communities of the city. They had a good turnout, but were a little disappointed with the amount of media coverage received. Croatia Letters from the World Day package were distributed to all the members in Croatia. These were read before performances, and there was an interview on TV. The date did cause some discussion due to its proximity to the date for the International Theatre Day. Germany In Germany the celebrations were on the 27th instead of the 20th. They felt that the day was a good start for the new tradition, and asked their members to report to the centre about the activities they had planned for the day. They had a special meeting with German companies and organizations – a puppet theatre performance, reception and press conference – in Stuttgart. The mayor presented an idea for a new children`s theatre for 2002, with a new play house for 2003. USA In the United States individual theatres had celebrations, though it was as coordinated an event as they had wished it would be. They felt that the letters were very helpful, but the date on the balloons caused a problem. Great Britain There were celebrations in London, Northern England and Wales. All theatres in Britain were made aware of the event. In London, 320 children let off the balloons. They loved the balloons! Holland In Holland there is already a National Youth Theatre day in October, so they did not celebrate on the 20th of March. On their National Youth Theatre day all performances throughout the country are free. Canada Suzanne Osten`s letter went to all companies funded by the Canada Council for the Arts. They used the French translations in the French communities. In Canada also there was a question about the date and they suggested that it should either be 6 months apart from the International Theatre Day on the 27th of March, or celebrated in conjunction with the 27th. They were very pleased with the letter from Suzanne Osten, though they thought it was too long. Poland The letters contained within the World Day package were distributed to all the theatres in Poland. Different areas had a variety of celebrations, and received a lot of press reviews. There was positive response from all over the country. The day was an unexpected success! Wolfgang Schneider put forth several questions: What are the results from all of this? Should something be done regarding the date? What should be included in the next package and who should pen the letter? Helge Anderson responded that he is opposed to opening up the discussion about the date again. Niclas Malmcrona added that there has been very little mention of the date in the other reports that were sent to the General Secretariat. Wolfgang Schneider suggested that the information material should not have the date on them, and would then be more useful to all the centres. There was more discussion about the date and it was generally agreed that the official date should be the 20th, though people are free to celebrate it when they want. Harold Oaks added that it wouldn`t be wise to change it after only one year. He also suggested that suggestions for the contents of the next package should be put forth. Jan Skotnicki stressed the importance of the letter and the necessity of having it written by someone known to everyone everywhere. Discussion for the Theatre for Children and Young People World Day 2002 Niclas Malmcrona told the EC that the General Secretariat will not have the possibility to put such an extensive World Day-package together for the World Day 2002 due to financial circumstances. He asked the EC to put forward candidates for writing the World Day-message for 2002. After a brief discussion the issue was deferred to the Artistic Commission. 14. Report from the Preparations for the conference How to study theatre for children and young people, Zürich, November 1-4 Wolfgang Schneider presented a proposal, prepared collaboratively with the Swiss colleagues, for the conference (see enclosed). They would like the members of the Artistic Commission to play a special role in the working groups for the these papers. Wolfgang extended a generous invitation to any EC members that are interested in attending and participating, and asked that all interested members approach him. Vicky Ireland asked how the conference is being financed. Wolfgang explained that most of the funding is coming through the Swiss and German cultural ministries, but there is about $6000 still needed from ASSITEJ International. The request for $6000 was deferred to the Finance and Statues Commission for discussion. With reference to the proposal handed out to the EC, Vicky Ireland, asked why the aims have been described for advanced children`s and young people`s theatre. Vicky Ireland asked that they elaborate on what is intended by this description. After explaining the intended meaning it was determined that the word advanced should be replaced with the phrase high quality, and so will be amended. 15. Other Reports Ivica Simic attended the World Interplay meetings in Townsville, Australia before coming to Tokyo. He described it as an event for young playwrights to meet, together with their tutors, to explore their work. All of the writers are young though not many of them have a specific interest in writing for children. Ivica Simic observed that there were a number of countries not represented at the meetings and that this needs to be improved. He also feels that there is an opportunity to create a space in this event that is dedicated to writing for children and young people. Jan Skotnicki commented briefly on the Interplay Europe meetings. He observed that the young people are not interested in writing for children, but rather are young writers expressing their world views. He added the importance of writing for the audience, and suggested that this topic be addressed at the upcoming conference in Zürich. 16. UNESCO membership report Niclas Malmcrona reported that UNESCO are interested in a formal relationship with ASSITEJ, but prior to that a couple of years of an informal relationship are necessary. A new letter has been written by Niclas Malmcrona to UNESCO inquiring about the nature of the co-projects they are asking for. So far no reply has been received. Remi Boucher asked what is expected from this relationship and Wolfgang responded that it is a matter of status. Remi offered his assistance in any way. Harold Oaks, Wolfgang Schneider, Remi Boucher and Niclas Malmcrona will discuss the matter. 17. Report from the jury of the Honorary President´s Award (see enclosure) Michael FitzGerald presented the jury`s report. He reviewed the candidates and the criteria that the jury used to guide their decision making process. The jury agreed that all candidates were of the highest quality. After sharing the jury`s report with the EC, Harold Oaks asked Michael FitzGerald that a model draft of their recommendations be presented to the EC members in general and specifically to the Artistic Commission who will deal with the matter. Wolfgang Schneider added that it was a very concrete discussion and a difficult decision to make. He extended his gratitude and appreciation to Michael FitzGerald for his role on the jury. 18. Honorary membership (see enclosure) Harold Oaks directed the EC to the enclosed letter and spoke briefly about Ann Shaw, USA, and the work that she has done. The application for Honorary Membership was approved and will be put forth at the General Assembly. 19. Discussons a) Fees & Festivals Remi Boucher was asked to elaborate on the comments he made at the last EC meeting in Harare, regarding the tradition of not paying the performers at the congress festival. He explained that it is difficult for him to invite a Canadian group to the festival if they will not be paid. Helge Andersen acknowledged that although it would be nice to be able to pay all of the performers, it is not realistic. In addition, mandating a system that enures the artists get paid will change the spirit of the event and the experience of the performers, and this needs to be carefully considered before a decision is reached. Wolfgang Schneider feels that such a discussion should be prepared. He would prefer if the EC members were to gather information on how such matters are dealt with in their countries and share this information at the next meeting. A brief discussion followed, during which the following points were raised: l Currently in Zimbabwe the performers are paid at festivals, however, they feel it would be more ideal to have a situation which didn`t require paying fees to the artists. Rather, the attention they could receive from the event would make it worthwhile enough to participate without being involved. l Making it a requirement to pay the artists could potentially discourage some countries from offering to host events because it is simply impossible for them due to economic restraints. l Not paying the artists may seriously limit the content of the festivals and prevent a lot of exposure for companies that are unable to find other sources of monetary support to assist them in simply being present. If the option is to pay to attend and participate in a festival, or work in their region and make money, many performers must choose to stay and make money – the allure of possibly gaining exposure is not enough. l Kim Woo-ok remarked that he arranged the festival for 2002 in Seoul based on the tradition of not paying the performers that attend. He would have arranged it differently if the opposite were the case – and reinforced the idea that fees would limit the content and diversity of the festival he is organizing. l In a situation where the artists are not getting paid to perform, it is important to cover their out of pocket expenses – in the end this may amount to more than the amount that they would be paid to perform only one or two shows. l Because ASSITEJ is an international situation the question should be examined seriously and regarded as a matter of political statement concerning what is valued and how it is valued. l The EC can only recommend that performers get paid, but because the festivals are not ASSITEJ festivals, and because of the varying circumstances, it is not possible to make it a rule. l If the issue of paying or not is based on the idea of ASSITEJ supporting the work of professional artists, then consensus over the definition of professional is necessary. Remi Boucher commented that he would welcome a deep and thorough discussion on this matter because it is a fundamental point of principle. Kim van der Boon expressed her disappointment that this discussion had not been prepared for this meeting, as the minutes from Harare stated that it would be examined in Tokyo. Niclas Malmcrona responded that he thought that raising the issue here would prompt the EC to examine the pertinent questions surrounding the issue and so better prepare for a productive discussion later on. Kim van der Boon felt that Harold Oaks should have prepared a working paper, with background information and possibilities to solve the issue, to introduce the discussion for this meeting. Harold Oaks ended the discussion by stating that the matter will be taken up by the Finance and Statutes commissions, and that a sub-committee may be established to resolve the issue and bring it to the next EC-meeting. b) ASSITEJ Catalogue of scripts in English, proposed by Tony Reekie of Scotland (see enclosure) Niclas Malmcrona reviewed the idea with the EC and brought their attention to the 5 questions put forth on the enclosure. Is this a good idea, and if so, how should it be pursued? Wolfgang Schneider remarked that this is a big project with no end, and so a major undertaking. He recommended that it be added to the agenda for the next EC meeting so that time and thought could be given to the best method for co-ordinating the efforts of all the centers towards such ends. Jan Skotnicki suggested that the centers could contact Tony Reekie to give him the information from their countries directly. Vicky Ireland proposed that she and Tony Reekie work together on a proposal to bring to the next meeting. Lou Westbury suggested using the website as a place where people can access and add information about plays they are interested in or know about. The summaries on the ASSITEJ website could link users to more detailed information or specific access of the texts/translations. Ivica Simic remarked that similar work is being done by ITI and that this may be an opportunity for ITI and ASSITEJ to combine their efforts. Harold Oaks closed the discussion by confirming that Vicky Ireland and Tony Reekie will work together on the idea with the suggestions put forth during this discussion to bring it back to the next EC-meeting. c) Future Congresses and decisions in the General Assembly Niclas Malmcrona directed the meeting towards Enclosure 6 regarding future general assemblies and decisions in the assembly. In particular, it asks whether or not the General Assembly in Seoul 2002 can decide upon places for the 2008 Assembly, with special attention to the questions stated at the end of the enlosure. Harold Oaks noted that the constitution does not explicitly preclude the suggested proposal and so should be possible. Remi Boucher pointed out that said proposal would allow for work on artistic projects in advance. He feels that knowing 6 years in advance would be beneficial in terms of securing funding. Another advantage being that such a system could foster greater continuity between congresses. Remi is interested in hosting the 2005 Congress in Montreal and would like the advance time to work on preparing for it. Harold Oaks suggested polling the centres to get feedback on any problems this could pose for them. Lou Westbury pointed out that the advance time wouldn't help in Australia because you can't apply for funding that far in advance. She added that the process of deciding at the Assembly is an important and exciting part of that event. Helge Andersen felt that the constitution would have to be ammended in order to accommodate this kind of change, and doesn't support the suggestion. Wolfgang Schneider pointed out that if the General Assembly endorses this decision, all interested countries must be prepared in Seoul to make their bids for 2005 and 2008. Helge Andersen commented that the continuity of the congresses is also contingent upon the composition of the Executive Committee. If this is endorsed it will be a new project left to a new executive. Harold Oaks suggested surveying the centres for feedback and reactions to the proposal which was endorsed by the EC. The General Secretariat will handle the survey and the matter will be addressed at the next meeting. d) Jan´s letter Deferred to the next meeting. 20. Commission meetings 21. Commission reports a) Congress Commission Kim Woo-ok told the EC that he has decided on three of the five foreign performances for the festival in Seoul. These will be from Germany, Belgium and Canada. Kim Woo-ok distributed a copy of the latest information brochure, which will be available in English/Japanese and English/Korean translations. The second brochure will be ready at the end of November and the third by the end of March next year. Kim Woo-ok visited many countries in an effort to get high quality performances. He directed the EC`s attention to the handout (see enclosed) listing the applicants and asked for feedback on any of the shows that other members of the EC may have already seen or be familiar with. Kim Woo-ok asked the EC to get in touch with companies in their countries and ask them to submit videos as these are very useful in making the decisions. Of the Asian nations, performances have been invited from Japan, China, Sri Lanka and the Phillipines. He is still looking for one more from Asia. Kim Woo-ok requested proposals/ideas for workshops and seminars from the EC members – the deadline for the proposals is the beginning of October. The Congress Commission also discussed a letter from IATC - International Association of Theatre Critics - with the proposal of a seminar at the Seoul Congress. It was decided that Niclas Malmcrona will write a letter to IATC to invite them to organise the seminar in co-operation with ASSITEJ International and ASSITEJ Korea. b) Communication and Publication Commission i) Website Niclas Malmcrona announced that the new layout for the website will be ready in a few days. The address will remain the same. Any new information, ideas or changes for the website must be sent to Niclas Malmcrona or Peter Manscher, Denmark. Lou Westbury asked that each centre push the new website and remind their members that all information can be updated and corrected very quickly. ii) Brochure Niclas Malmcrona will finalize the new brochure in a couple of weeks. 100 copies will be sent to each centre within the next two months. The brochure will be available in 6 languages. iii) Annual Eckhard Mittelstädt will send two copies to each centre. It is important that the centres encourage people to buy the annual. It would also be beneficial if the centres make efforts towards advertising the annual in any relevant regional publications. iv) Newsletter Communication with and among the centres still needs improvement. The centres are not submitting enough info for the newsletter. The General Secretariat is working towards improving this, and welcomes input from the centres that they feel could help. The next issue will contain a Quotable Quotes section. Please submit possible quotes to the General Secretariat. v) A survey will be prepared in time for the next meeting about how the members and centres use the Annual. vi) Niclas Malmcrona asked all commissions to look back on the Why ASSITEJ? survey to see where their work is at in relation to the results of the survey. Several members of the EC agreed that more discussion and specific analysis of the Survey's results are necessary. c) Finance & Statutes Commission Harold Oaks presented the Artistic Commission's request for money from ASSITEJ International for the How to Study Children and Young People's Theatre? conference in Zürich. He explained that their request is for $6000. Though ASSITEJ is not able to fund the full amount for the conference, there is already $1500 in the Artistic Commission's budget which they may use. Harold Oaks proposed that ASSITEJ contribute another $1500, and Wolfgang Schneider and Eckhardt Mittelstädt agreed to try to keep the expenses at $3000. The following points were raised in the discussion concerning the appropriate disbursement of ASSITEJ monies: l Opposition because ASSITEJ Germany and Switzerland should be responsible for getting their own funding. In response to this it was pointed out that though ASSITEJ Germany and Switzerland are organizing the conference, it is a project of the Artistic Commission of ASSITEJ International. The issue being addressed now is simply how much support ASSITEJ International can give in way of funding. l Some members felt the matter to be confusing because ASSITEJ International has never given money to countries in the past. Others responded that this lack of precedent should not mandate this decision. Other projects - such as the Annual - have been funded cooperatively by ASSITEJ International and sources from countries. l The EC were asked to consider the amount of work behind such a project when considering the matter, and to realize that the meetings can not be the only result of the work. l The request for the money should have been put forth simultaneously with the proposal for the conference in Harare. l Should a procedure be designed for applying for such funds for the future? President Harold Oaks put the matter to a vote with the following outcome: 9 in favour 3 opposed 2 obstained The request for the §3000 to the conference in Zürich from the Artistic Commission was passed. d) Artistic Commission Wolfgang Schneider started by saying that the Artistic Commission had a particularly large agenda to attend to. Wolfgang Schneider distributed the minutes from the Artistic Commission's meeting. (see enclosed) i) How to Study Children and Young People's Theatre? This conference is currently the Artistic Commission's main project. 8 members of the Artistic Commission will be involved with the working groups in Zurich at the beginning of November. ii) 2nd Theatre for Children and Young People World Day 2002 The Commssion discussed the issue and put forward a number of candidates. After a brief discussion it was decided that for 2001, Peter Brook, would be asked first, and then Volker Ludwig. With regards to the letter in the World Day package, Niclas Malmcrona commented that if Peter Brook writes the letter for 2002, a non-european should be approached the year after that. Lou Westbury suggested that each year the letter could be written by someone from a different continent. iii) Forum about Artistic development of Theatre for Children and Young People in the World. See enclosed The Artistic Commission put forward the proposal of a forum/seminar during the General Assembly in Seoul. The forum/seminar includes four workshops and introduction and final words originating in the discussion in the Artistic Commission during this term. After a brief discussion the EC endorsed the proposal and one day of the General assembly will be set aside for the forum/workshop. iv) General Discussion Vicky Ireland expressed some concern over the number of extra Artistic Commission meetings because they are difficult to finance. Wolfgang Schneider asked Vicky to clarify her comment. She explained that when she joined the Artistic Commission she didn't know that it would involve extra travel. She can not afford the extra meetings - time or money wise. Other members of the Executive Committee added the following points to the discussion: l The job description for Executive Committee members stipulates that they are responsible for covering their travel expenses for the meetings - perhaps the descriptions for the commissions could be amended to alert potential commission members to the kind of commitment expected from them. l It is not necessary to attend the meetings in order to have a voice - committee members may prepare for the meetings in advance and submit their work to the others for the meetings. l The Artistic Commission is the only commission that meets outside of Executive Committee meetings - if the others do not have to meet, why should the Artistic Commission? Responses to this question noted that the Artistic Commission requires more time for discussions, and that other commissions are able to communicate and work without meeting in ways which are not appropriate for the Artistic Commission. Harold Oaks closed the discussion stating that issues surrounding travel expectations need to be clarified before people choose which commissions they will serve on. 22. Dates and place of Next EC meeting The next Executive Committee meeting is proposed for the end of February in Brazil. Niclas Malmcrona explained that he will travel to Rio in September to meet with ASSITEJ Brazil and discuss the organisation of the meeting. Remi Boucher asked where the meeting will be if ASSITEJ Brazil is unable to host it. Niclas responded that if there are other offers, he is open to those possibilities, though he could also try to organize something in Stockholm, also in February. 23. Any Other Business Harold Oaks said that planning needs to be done for the elections at the General Assembly. Kim van der Boon reminded the EC that the letter that Jan Skotnicki wrote following the Dallas meetings should be added to the agenda at the next meeting. 24. Closing of the Meeting Harold thanked the Japanese ASSITEJ for hosting the meetings and for their generosity during our time in Tokyo. He added a special thank you for the wonderful Kabuki theatre experience, and officially closed the meeting.