Prix de Lausanne declares 2018 Winners

A large audience attended the Prix de Lausanne Finals on Saturday, February 3, both at the Théâtre de Beaulieu in Switzerland and online. Eight young dancers were awarded a scholarship allowing them to enter one of the 72 partner schools or companies of the Prix de Lausanne. Non-awarded candidates could take part in the Networking Forum on February 4 and have the opportunity to be chosen by directors of the partner institutions.

The Prix de Lausanne has once again attracted young and promising dancers from all over the world. 74 out of the 78 selected candidates participated in the 46th edition. On Friday, February 2, 21 candidates were chosen at the Selections to compete in the Finals. Eight finalists were awarded a scholarship that provides them with the unique opportunity to choose among the 72 prestigious partner schools and companies of the Prix de Lausanne.

During the week, jury members have observed the candidates performing their classical and contemporary variations. This year, the artistic director of the HET National Ballet, Ted Brandsen, was president of the nine-jury member panel. As internationally-renowned dance professionals, they selected the eight most promising talents.

The 8 Prize Winners of the 2018 Prix de Lausanne are:

#407 – Shale Wagman – 17 years old – Canada

Sponsor: Oak Foundation

Performance Pieces: Don Quixote and Chroma

#112 –Hanna Park – 15 years old – South Korea

Sponsor: Bourse Jeune Espoir

Performance Pieces: La Bayadère and 1st Flash solo 1

#134 –Wenjin Guo – 16 years old – China

Sponsor: Beau-Rivage Palace

Performance Pieces: Don Quixote and Rossini Cards

#207 – Junsu Lee – 16 years old – South Korea

Sponsor: Harlequin Floors

Performance Pieces: La Fille Mal Gardée and Furia Corporis

#309 – Xinyue Zhao – 17 years old – China

Sponsor: Fondation Coromandel

Performance Pieces: Grand Pas Classique and Becomings

#412 – Miguel Angel David Aranda Maidana– 18 years old – Paraguay

Sponsor: Fondation Des Amis Du Prix de Lausanne

Performance Pieces: Paquita and Plan to B

#303 –Carolyne Galvao – 17 years old – Brazil

Sponsor: Emile Chouriet Geneve

Performance Pieces: Grand Pas Classique and Chroma

#135 – Aviva Gelfer-Mundl – 16 years old – USA

Sponsor: Fondation Albert Amon

Performance Pieces: Paquita and Touch, Feel, Sense

Contemporary Dance Prize

#207 – Junsu Lee – 16 years old – South Korea

Sponsor: Minerva Kunststiftung

For his interpretation of: Furia Corporis

Audience Favourite Prize

#303 –Carolyne Galvao – 17 years old – Brazil

Sponsor: Arte Concert

Performance Pieces: Grand Pas Classique and Chroma

Rudolf Nureyev Foundation Prize

#407 – Shale Wagman – 17 years old – Canada

Sponsor: Rudolf Nureyev Foundation

Performance Pieces: Don Quixote and Chroma

Best Swiss Candidate Prize

#416 – Lukas Bareman – 18 years old – Belgium

Sponsor: Fondation en Faveur de L’Art Choregraphique

Performance Pieces: La Bayadère and Becomings

Finalists who were not awarded any prize receive the Finalist Award, a sum of CHF 1’000, through sponsor Bobst.

During the jury deliberations after the Finals, the audience enjoyed a performance in two parts. This year, the interlude began with the new Choreographic Project (made up of 50 students from Prix partner schools) premiering Pulse, choreographed by Goyo Montero. It continued with a performance by Mariinsky Theatre First Soloist Kristina Shapran and Principal Dancer Xander Parish.

Throughout the week, the Prix de Lausanne’s daily live-streamed sessions have been watched more than 634,500 times by viewers online (on ARTE Concert, the Prix de Lausanne website and Facebook). For the second year, the Selections and Finals were also live-streamed in China with Prix de Lausanne 1994 Prize Winner Chi Cao as commentator. This live streaming has been watched more than 1.6 millions times by viewers online.

Prix de Lausanne CEO and Artistic Director Shelly Power stated, “Thanks to the live streaming, the Prix de Lausanne is proud to share this unique experience worldwide.”

For further information, visit www.prixdelausanne.org.

Photo: Aviva Gelfer-Mundl performing at the 2018 Prix de Lausanne Finals. Photo by Gregory Batardon.