A web audience followed the 49th Prix de Lausanne Finals thanks to live streaming. Among the 20 finalists, six were awarded a Prize allowing them to enter one of the partner schools or companies of the Prix de Lausanne.
78 out of the 82 initially selected candidates participated in the competition with their videos and 20 of them reached the finals that took place on Saturday 6 February 2021, via video.
At the end of the finals, the jury, presided this year by the Director and Choreographer of the Basel Ballet, Richard Wherlock, selected six Prize Winners. Thanks to their scholarships, these six dancers will have the opportunity to enter one of the prestigious partner schools and companies of the Prix de Lausanne.
The 6 Prix de Lausanne 2021 Prize Winners
OAK FOUNDATION
| 218 | CASALINHO António | Portugal | 17.7 years old | 1. Diana and Acteon 2. Grinding the Teeth |
BOURSE JEUNE ESPOIR
| 226 | ABDEL-NOUR Luca | Egypt | 17.10 years old | 1. Paquita 2. A Solo for Diego |
FONDATION ALBERT AMON
| 118 | MACIANO Andrey Jesus | Brazil | 16 years old | 1. Harlequinade 2. Urge |
FONDATION CARIS – JEUNE ESPOIR
| 210 | YUN Seojeong | South Korea | 17.3 years old | 1. Don Quixote, Kitri Variation from Pas de deux 2. Traces |
FONDATION COROMANDEL
| 236 | FUCHIYAMA Shunhei | Japan | 18.2 years old | 1. Grand Pas Classique 2. A Solo for Diego |
FONDATION EN FAVEUR DE L'ART CHORÉGRAPHIQUE
| 231 | COUPAL Ashley | Canada | 18 years old | 1. Giselle 2. Rain |
Other prizes :
NUREYEV FOUNDATION – Best Young Talent Award
| 118 | MACIANO Andrey Jesus | Brazil | 16 years old | 1. Harlequinade 2. Urge |
MINERVA KUNSTSTIFTUNG – Contemporary Dance Award
| 218 | CASALINHO António | Portugal | 17.7 years old | 1. Diana and Acteon 2. Grinding the Teeth |
| 241 | CRUZ Rui Cesar | Brazil | 18.6 years old | 1. Diana and Acteon 2. Rain |
FONDATION EN FAVEUR DE L'ART CHORÉGRAPHIQUE – Best Swiss Candidate
| 226 | ABDEL-NOUR Luca | Egypt | 17.10 years old | 1. Paquita 2. A Solo for Diego |
WEB AUDIENCE FAVOURITE AWARD
| 226 | ABDEL-NOUR Luca | Egypt | 17.10 years old | 1. Paquita 2. A Solo for Diego |
Live streaming
This year, the ballet class exercise videos and the variations broadcast during the selections have been watched almost 500,000 times on ARTE Concert, YouTube, Facebook as well as on the Prix de Lausanne website. The Selections and Finals were also streamed in China, on Tencent.
Young Creation Award
The five final choreographies of this new programme were revealed on Wednesday, 3 February. The Prix de Lausanne Jury judged the five original variations and announced the two winners during the Finals' Interlude. The winners are:
SAMUEL WINKLER
| Choreography: Suppress | School of Hamburg Ballet John-Neumeier | Danced by Gabriel Barbosa | Music : Aurora | Composed by Vincent Isler |
MAYA SMALLWOOD
| Choreography: Unravel | Canada's National Ballet School | Danced by Ewan Hartman | Music : Euphoria | Composed by Vincent Isler |
Top photo: Antonio CASALINHO, Oak Foundation and Contemporary Dance Award, Prix de Lausanne 2021 © Nikita Alba
Graham Spicer is a writer, director and photographer in Milan, blogging (under the name ‘Gramilano') about dance, opera, music and photography for people “who are a bit like me and like some of the things I like”. He was a regular columnist for Opera Now magazine and wrote for the BBC until transferring to Italy.
His scribblings have appeared in various publications from Woman's Weekly to Gay Times, and he wrote the ‘Danza in Italia' column for Dancing Times magazine.
