World Stage Design (WSD), the prestigious quadrennial festival of OISTAT and the "Olympic Games" of theatre design, will be held from October 18th to 25th, 2025, at the Sharjah Performing Arts Academy (SPAA) in the stunning Sharjah, United Arab Emirates.
WSD 2025 is where all of us explore our next heritage whilst celebrating our past. Tomorrow’s heritage is today’s exploration. We create this heritage with our neighbours, as a global community. WSD 2025 invites emerging and professional creators, practitioners, artists, and audiences in celebration of the work of performance designers, architects, and technicians in the context of theatre, performance, and live events by stepping on the journey of exploring Tomorrow’s Heritage.
World Stage Design has become a big umbrella undertaking OISTAT World Congress and 4 distinct events:
1.International Theatre Design Exhibition
An exhibition showcasing international performance design across all design disciplines, featuring both professional and emerging sections.
2. Scenofest
A worldwide festival and celebration of performance design, including seminars, workshops, performances, and talks.
3. Theatre Architecture Competition (TAC)
An international ideas competition aimed at encouraging new ideas about theatre architecture and interdisciplinary cooperation.
4. Technical Invention Prize (TIP)
An international competition for technicians to present the most creative and simple yet bright idea for devices used in theatre / performance.
Meet and mingle with global theatre artists and designers. WSD 2025 is a chance to build lasting connections, exchange ideas, and discover new opportunities in the world of performance design while Immersing in the cultural richness and vibrant arts scene of Sharjah, known as cultural, architecture, and literature hub in UAE.
World Stage Design 2025
About OISTAT
Founded in Prague in 1968, OISTAT stands for “Organisation Internationale des Scénographes, Techniciens et Architectes de Théâtre” in French, and “International Organisation of Scenographers, Theatre Architects and Technicians” in English. OISTAT is a global network for theatre practitioners celebrating design, technology and architecture in live performances, and its headquarters locates in Taipei, Taiwan.
About SPAA
Sharjah Performing Arts Academy (SPAA) is a centre of excellence, and is the only dedicated performing arts academy in the Middle East. SPAA’s academy focuses on training and educating students in performing and production arts to succeed in a competitive and ever evolving industry. SPAA provides a comprehensive education for the professional performing artist and for production and technical specialists.
