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Bringing together 200 arts leaders from all over Asia, as well as Australian arts leaders, the 2016 AAPPAC (Association of Asia Pacific Performing Arts Centres) Conference will be held in Adelaide during the OzAsia Festival, from 27th to 30th September 2016.

The three day conference will connect arts leaders from across Asia and Australia, seeking to make connections and examine key issues affecting Asia Pacific Arts Centres and Festivals.

With theme ‘Arts Centres – Connecting Communities’, the Conference will featuring over 30 panellists and speakers across nine sessions, with a program set to ignite inspiring conversation and rigorous debate. The conference also includes various networking events and an exciting array of national and international performance showcases.

Speakers include Dr Bernd M. Scherer, Director House of World Cultures, Berlin (Opening Speaker); Benson Puah, Chief Executive, The Esplanade Co Ltd; Winsome Chow, Chief Executive Hong Kong Arts Development Council and Louis Yu, Executive Director Performing Arts West Kowloon Cultural District Authority.

Looking forward to the event, Adelaide Festival Centre Chief Executive and Artistic Director and AAPPAC Chairman Douglas Gautier explains “Adelaide Festival Centre is acknowledged internationally as a leader in Asian engagement and we ... look forward to welcoming arts leaders from around the globe at this year’s AAPPAC Conference.

“(The Conference) will explore the contribution of art centres to multicultural communities. It is timely that in these uncertain times delegates will experience firsthand how OzAsia bridges Asian and Australian cultures”.

Speaking last year, Gautier (pictured) shared a belief in the importance of “cultural diplomacy” in Australia’s relationships with Asia.

He stated that while many countries and states try and forge purely economic relationships with China, the only way to properly engage was to also have strong cultural ties.

Gautier said China’s Deputy Minster of Culture had told him that “special relationships are based on politics, trade and culture” and that China would not trade with anyone that did not combine the three.

He also sees opportunities to benefit from the burgeoning arts administration industry in China, commenting “cultural centres are exploding in China and there are many opportunities to teach the Chinese how to make money in the arts because they have no experience in it.”

AAPPAC was established in 1996 with the assistance of a number of prominent performing arts centres in the Asia Pacific region. 

Click here for more information on the AAPPAC 2016 Conference in the Australasian Leisure Management industry Calendar.

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