We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Ai Toyoshima. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Ai below.

Hi Ai , thanks for joining us today. Can you open up about a risk you’ve taken – what it was like taking that risk, why you took the risk and how it turned out?

I believe an attitude of willing to take a risk is very important as an artist/creative because without doing it, you will go nowhere. The result of it might not be something you expected, but there is always something valuable left.

I am producing a one-week theatre festival to represent and promote my fellow NYC based Japanese artists, and that is my taking-a-risk. To be honest, I was waiting for the right moment. Like “I would do it after making a Broadway credit” or “I will do it when I’ve become someone well-known.”

Yet here I am, I am doing something cool.

Time Capsule Project Official Website: https://www.timecapsuleprojectnyc.com/
IG Account: @timecapsuleproject.nyc

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

I have been dancing since I was 5 or 6, and have happened to love it since then.
I work as a musical theatre actor, choreographer, stage manager, technical crew and now as a producer.

For me, it is more exciting to create something rather than performing it on stage if it does make sense.
As an actor, many often you will only be given a container, and your voice won’t be heard much to make the container, but as a choreographer,/director and even a stage manager, I get to create the container. And that’s fun

Is there mission driving your creative journey?

To give a space for my fellow Asian creatives, more specifically for my fellow Japanese artists.

I often end up being only Asian or non-native English speaking creator in a production, and especially in the commercial theatre, the door to the world is still very heavy to open. There are many talented Japanese theatre creatives with a great ability of becoming a creative leader in the industry, yet there is very little opportunity for us.

I want to create a truer diversity where one’s background doesn’t prevent them from flying high.

How can we best help foster a strong, supportive environment for artists and creatives?

Simply, come to see a show. Not only Broadway production and a Hollywood movie, but any shows you can find. In a smaller production, I often see theatrical workers as the majority of the audience members and feel disappointed.

Yes, it is our effort to constantly reach out to a non-theatrical world, but at the same time, people have to give a chance to a smaller scale production. Cuz who knows?

Everyone starts from somewhere, and you’d find a sensational work in one of the smaller theaters in NYC. And that somewhere can be the Time Capsule Project.

Like I said, I would love people to take a risk to stop by some smaller theaters. I promise there are very many good works in very many small theaters.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.timecapsuleprojectnyc.com/
• Instagram: @toyosienne or/and @timecapsuleproject.nyc

Image Credits

All the photo are taken by my own photo business company, iPhoto.
Most of them taken by me, and a few of them by Miku Hirayama, my co-creator