Dear Sir or Madam,
We hope this letter finds you well, and we thank you sincerely for your continued interest in and support of our work.
The Osaka Prefectural Government, the City of Osaka and the Osaka Culture and Arts Project Executive Committee are pleased to present OSAKA COMEDY FESTIVAL 2026, held over three days from Saturday 10 to Monday 12 October 2026 in the Namba district of Osaka. We are therefore delighted to extend this invitation to members of the international press. For five outlets only, allocated in order of application, we will provide access that is not available through general press accreditation: backstage and rehearsal coverage, comments taken from performers immediately before and after they appear, and individual interviews with the performers of your choice.
Held under the theme “From Osaka to the World” together with the Osaka Prefectural and City Governments, this is a major international comedy event. Namba Hiroba will host the opening ceremony, comedy shows, street performances, circus-style staging and food trucks serving Osaka’s own cuisine, while the SPACE14 theatre presents a programme of staged productions. More than 30,000 visits are expected across the three days.
At the heart of the festival is non-verbal comedy — comedy performed without a single word. Led by THE TOKYO IDIOTS, the non-verbal trio of Tonikaku Akarui Yasumura, Koikuchi Ichikawa and
WES-P, the line-up brings together a wide range of performers and works whose humour crosses both language and culture. Comedy that requires neither subtitles nor translation is among the most immediately accessible entertainment available to visitors to Japan, and we believe it will engage your readers and viewers in equal measure.
A second highlight is the Cirque du Soleil programme. Performers selected through the workshops and auditions held from 7 to 9 October will take the stage on 12 October. Stepping forward, being chosen, rehearsing, and finally standing before an audience: by following a single performer through that process, you can produce not an event report but a documentary feature, in print or on film. Charlie Burrows — Head of Scouting and Head of Casting, Resident Shows, and Senior Casting Advisor at Cirque du Soleil, who has discovered performers now working on stages around the world — is also available to discuss what he looks for in a performer, and why Osaka has been chosen as the place to find the next one.
With this in mind, we would like you to experience and cover the festival at first hand, and have prepared the three coverage options set out below. You are welcome to choose whichever best suits your schedule and editorial interests.
We hope you will experience, in the atmosphere of the city itself, the laughter that arises beyond language and the excitement that surrounds it. Nothing would please us more than for the festival to serve as material for your coverage, and as a fresh proposal for readers considering a visit to Japan.
We very much look forward to hearing from you.
Yours sincerely,
DETAILS
1. Event: OSAKA COMEDY FESTIVAL 2026
2. Dates: Saturday 10 – Monday 12 October 2026 (3 days)
3. Venues: <Street content> Namba Hiroba (5-1 Namba, Chuo-ku, Osaka)
<Theatre content> SPACE14 (14F Shinsaibashi PARCO, 1-8-3 Shinsaibashisuji, Chuo-ku, Osaka)
4. Organisers: Osaka Prefectural Government / City of Osaka / Osaka Culture and Arts Project Executive Committee
5. Admission: Free of charge
6. Eligibility: Press organisations based outside Japan, and international media based in Japan 7. Programme:
◾️ Street content — “STREET PERFORMANCE”
Dates: Saturday 10 – Monday 12 October 2026 (public holiday), 10:00–17:00
Cast: GABEZ, THE TOKYO IDIOTS (Tonikaku Akarui Yasumura / TONY, Koikuchi Ichikawa / GASSY, WES-P), Akira Ishida of NON STYLE, and others
Venue: Namba Hiroba
◾️ Theatre content — “CHALLENGE”
Date: Saturday 10 October 2026 — (1) 16:00–17:00 (2) 19:00–20:00
Director: Akira Ishida (NON STYLE)
Cast: Akira Ishida (NON STYLE), Uematsu, Ayuna Ogata, WES-P, and others
Tickets: ¥3,000 in advance / ¥3,500 on the door (incl. tax, all seats reserved)
◾️ Theatre content — “SKIT COMEDY SHOW”
Date: Sunday 11 October 2026, 12:30–13:30
Cast: WES-P, Chance Oshiro, and others
Tickets: ¥2,500 in advance / ¥3,000 on the door (incl. tax, all seats reserved)
Venue (both): SPACE14
◾️ Cirque du Soleil — “Clown Workshop & Audition”
Dates: Wednesday 7 and Thursday 8 October, 9:00–16:00 / approx. 30 places, free of charge Organiser: Cirque du Soleil Casting
◾️ Cirque du Soleil — “Circus Act Audition”
Date: Friday 9 October, 9:00–16:00 / approx. 30 places, free of charge
Organiser: Cirque du Soleil Casting
◾️ OnlineCircus presents “NEXT GATE OSAKA 2026”
Date: Monday 12 October (public holiday), from 13:00 / Venue: SPACE14 / Tickets: TBC Organiser: OnlineCircus — Japan’s representative for VIVA Fest in Las Vegas, USA, will be chosen from eight acts
8. Coverage options: Please select from the two options below
* More than one option may be selected
* Depending on the item requested, we may not be able to accommodate every arrangement
a. [A] On-site coverage (during the festival / Osaka)
Dates: Saturday 10 – Monday 12 October 2026
Venues: Namba Hiroba / SPACE14 and others
What we provide:
• A press pass valid for all three days (free of charge)
• Permission to film and photograph within the venues
• A press room
• Official assets (photography, video and English-language performer profiles) • Arrangement of short comments, photography and filming with performers • Arrangement of individual interview slots with performers
• Arrangement of individual interviews with Cirque du Soleil representatives • Arrangement for your published article to be shared from performers’ official social media accounts
b. [B] Online interview (before the festival / remote)
Period: Mid-September to early October 2026
Format: Zoom, Google Meet or similar
Featuring: Akira Ishida of NON STYLE, and others
What we provide:
• A one-to-one online interview (30 minutes per outlet)
• Japanese-to-English interpretation
• Photography and video assets
• Arrangement for your published article to be shared from performers’ official social media accounts
9. How to apply: Please reply by email with the following six items.
(1) Company / media outlet name
(2) Country and city where you are based
(3) Number of attendees
(4) Attendee details (full name / email address / telephone number)
(5) Coverage option(s) requested (A / B — more than one is welcome)
(6) Interview subjects or editorial themes of interest (optional)
10. Deadline: [A] On-site coverage — 2 October 2026
[B] Online interview — 2 October 2026
* Limited to five media outlets, allocated in order of application
* Places are limited; we would be grateful for an early reply.
11. Official website: https://oc-fes-com-e.athp.transer.com/ ／
https://osaka-ca-fes-jp-e.athp.transer.com/project/event/ocf2026
12. Official social media: X (@osaka_comedyfes) / Instagram (@osaka_comedy_festival)
■ Applications and enquiries
OSAKA COMEDY FESTIVAL 2026 — International Press Desk
Contact: Kensuke Kushihashi
Email : pr@apocc.co.jp
Telephone: +81-3-6823-8848 (weekdays 10:00-19:00 JST)