❚ September 2, 2026
❚ 1F Lobby of National Theater, National Theater and Concert Hall, Taiwan
❚ Register on Accupass: https://www.accupass.com/go/wavemakerssymposium
Panelists
Aby Cohen (Brazil)
Brazilian/Slovenian scenographer, artistic director, exhibition designer and curator. OISTAT President elected for the terms 2021-2029. Internationally recognized for her work in theatre, exhibition and film, with projects realized in more than 10 countries. Awarded PQ Golden Triga in 2011 as designer and curator of Brazil's National Exhibition. Also representing Brazil at PQ2019 as the National Curator and founder of PQBrasil Platform (2017). PQ International Curator in 2015 for SharedSpace/Politics. Other international design awards include the IDCA 2013: Best Exhibition Layout for a project delivered to Tropenmuseum, Amsterdam. PhD in Theatre Theory and Practice, currently living and working in the UK as the Head of Postgraduate Department at Academy of Live Technology.
Mia David (Serbia)
Mia David (Belgrade, 1974) is an architect, curator, and professor. She graduated from the Faculty of Architecture in Belgrade and earned her MA and Doctor of Arts degree in Scenic Design from the University of Arts in Belgrade. Her work spans curatorial practice, exhibition and set design, performing arts, education, and cultural management. She served as Acting Director of the Belgrade Cultural Centre (2010–2014) and led Navigator Gallery (2016–2023). Since 2024, she has been curator and artistic director of Gallery November and is a Full Professor at the Faculty of Technical Sciences in Novi Sad. She has exhibited, curated, and lectured internationally and received numerous awards.
Jan Štěpánek (Czech Republic)
Jan Štěpánek is a leading Czech scenographer, visual artist, and educator. He is Head of the Department of Scenography at the Theatre Faculty of the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague (DAMU) and Chair of the Czech OISTAT Centre (ČOSDAT). With over 25 years of professional experience, he has designed for theatre, opera, and film, collaborating with Czech and international directors. He has taught and conducted workshops internationally and is a member of the Prague Quadrennial (PQ) Council.
April Viczko (Canada)
April is a Professor of Theatre Design in the Drama Department at the University of Alberta. She is a full member and past president of the Associated Designers of Canada. April was the Project Lead for World Stage Design 2022, a festival meets a conference of over 100 performances, colloquia, and events held every four years on a different continent. In 2006, she shared the Siminovitch Protégé Prize. In 2000, she received a Tyrone Guthrie Award at the Stratford Festival of Canada, where she spent four seasons as an assistant designer. At UCalgary, April received multiple awards for her teaching and research.
Moderator
Wan-Jung Wei (Taiwan)
Wan-Jung Wei is OISTAT’s first Executive Director with a diplomatic background since the organization was established in 1968. While in her teenage years, she practiced hip -hop dancing and later transitioned to contemporary dance. With a belief in the commonality between diplomacy and performing arts of "creating dialogues in daily life," Wei explores the relationship between contemporary dance and society by writing dance critiques, with a particular focus on feminism and gender issues. She earned her MA degree in Arts Politics from Tisch School of the Arts, New York University. She loves dogs.
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Panelists
Mia David (Serbia)
Mia David (Belgrade, 1974) is an architect, curator, and professor. She graduated from the Faculty of Architecture in Belgrade and earned her MA and Doctor of Arts degree in Scenic Design from the University of Arts in Belgrade. Her work spans curatorial practice, exhibition and set design, performing arts, education, and cultural management. She served as Acting Director of the Belgrade Cultural Centre (2010–2014) and led Navigator Gallery (2016–2023). Since 2024, she has been curator and artistic director of Gallery November and is a Full Professor at the Faculty of Technical Sciences in Novi Sad. She has exhibited, curated, and lectured internationally and received numerous awards.
Jan Štěpánek (Czech Republic)
Jan Štěpánek is a leading Czech scenographer, visual artist, and educator. He is Head of the Department of Scenography at the Theatre Faculty of the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague (DAMU) and Chair of the Czech OISTAT Centre (ČOSDAT). With over 25 years of professional experience, he has designed for theatre, opera, and film, collaborating with Czech and international directors. He has taught and conducted workshops internationally and is a member of the Prague Quadrennial (PQ) Council.
Juhsin Tsai (Taiwan)
Juhsin Tsai currently serves as Head of Theater Section at the National Theater & Concert Hall, Taiwan, where she oversees theater programming and departmental operations, alongside contributing to artist development and sustainable inclusivity initiatives. Drawing on years of deep-rooted experience across arts festivals and major cultural events, she brings together expertise in program production and promotion, cross-sector collaboration, and organizational operations. She specializes in turning visionary concepts into actionable strategies.
April Viczko (Canada)
April is a Professor of Theatre Design in the Drama Department at the University of Alberta. She is a full member and past president of the Associated Designers of Canada. April was the Project Lead for World Stage Design 2022, a festival meets a conference of over 100 performances, colloquia, and events held every four years on a different continent. In 2006, she shared the Siminovitch Protégé Prize. In 2000, she received a Tyrone Guthrie Award at the Stratford Festival of Canada, where she spent four seasons as an assistant designer. At UCalgary, April received multiple awards for her teaching and research.
*Joining online:
Viktoria Ebel & Wiebke Pohl (Germany)
The German Theatre Technical Association (Deutsche Theatertechnische Gesellschaft / DTHG) is a professional association for event technology based in Cologne. It brings together creative and experienced professionals from various sectors. Its members are the experts behind the scenes—working closely with artists, they develop effective and technically safe solutions while designing stage spaces with craftsmanship. Through its professional network and wide-reaching connections in both the technical and artistic fields of cultural production, DTHG unites a diverse community of members, specialists, and experts. DTHG organizes key industry trade fairs on a biennial cycle, including the Bühnentechnische Tagung (BTT) and SHOWTECH, serving as central networking platforms for professionals in the field. The BTT, a national trade fair, takes place in different locations across Germany, while SHOWTECH, as an international trade fair, is hosted in Berlin, reinforcing the city's role as a global hub for theatre and event technology.
>> Learn more about the Symposium agenda
