Prix Benois de la Danse explained

The Benois de la Danse is a ballet competition held annually in Moscow. Founded by the International Dance Association in 1991, it takes place each year on or around April 29 and it's judged by a jury. The members of this jury change every year and it consists of only top ballet personages.

Statuettes are given to the winners in the categories of lifelong achievement, ballerina, danseur, choreographer, composer and designer.

The Benois de la Danse earns a cash prize of $1,000,000, as well as exceptional events occurring during the previous year on stages around the world. These include dancing roles of all kinds as well as choreographic accomplishments.

History

The idea for the Benois de la Danse was initiated in Moscow and the founders succeeded in obtaining the patronage of UNESCO in the autumn of 1992. Its scheduling at the end of April is meant to coincide with the birthday of the great Alexandre Benois (1870–1960) for whom it is named.

French sculptor Igor Ustinov designed the statuette of the Benois de la Danse award in 1992. He is the son of the famous actor Peter Ustinov, a great-nephew of Alexandre Benois.

Goals of competition

Members of the Benois de la Danse jury have included

Laureates of the prize[1]

Composers

Designers

Prix "Benois-Moscow Massine-Positano"

For High Artistry in Partnership

Lifetime achievement

Name (Nationality)YearCountryCompanyTraining
Alicia Alonso2000National Ballet of Cuba
(after New York City Ballet)
Sociedad Pro-Arte Musical
Rudi van Dantzig2002Dutch National BalletAnna Sybranda, Sonia Gaskell
William Forsythe 2002Stuttgart BalletJoffrey Ballet School
Mikhail Baryshnikov 2003American Ballet Theatre
(after Mariinsky Ballet)
Vaganova Academy
Maurice Béjart2003Béjart Ballet LausanneParis Opera Ballet School
Marina Semyonova2003Bolshoi Ballet
(after Mariinsky Ballet)
Vaganova Academy
Trisha Brown2005Trisha Brown Dance CompanyMills College
Hans van Manen2005Dutch National BalletSonia Gaskell, Françoise Adret
Mats Ek2006Cullberg Ballet
Laurent Hilaire[2] 2007Paris Opera BalletParis Opera Ballet School
Fernando Alonso2008National Ballet of Cuba
(after New York City Ballet)
Peter Farmer2010
Ohad Naharin2010Batsheva Dance CompanyBatsheva Dance Company, Juilliard School & School of American Ballet
Toer van Schayk2011Dutch National BalletIrail Gadescov, Sonia Gaskell
Pierre Lacotte2012Paris Opera BalletParis Opera Ballet School
John Neumeier 2013Hamburg Ballet
(after Frankfurt Ballet & Stuttgart Ballet)
Vera Volkova, Royal Ballet School
Brigitte Lefèvre2014Paris Opera BalletParis Opera Ballet School
Sylvie Guillem 2015Royal BalletParis Opera Ballet School
John Neumeier 2016Hamburg BalletVera Volkova, Royal Ballet School
Edward Watson2016Royal BalletRoyal Ballet School
Marcia Haydée2017Ballet de SantiagoRoyal Ballet School, Grand Ballet du Marquis de Cuevas (Monaco)
Natalia Makarova2018Mariinsky BalletVaganova Academy
Jiří Kylián2019

Ballerinas

Name (Nationality)YearCountryCompanyTraining
Nadezhda Gracheva1992Bolshoi BalletKazakh Ballet School, Moscow State College of Choreography
Isabelle Guérin1993Paris Opera BalletParis Opera Ballet School
Sylvie Guillem 1994Royal balletParis Opera Ballet School
Galina Stepanenko1995Bolshoi BalletBolshoi Ballet Academy
Dominique Khalfouni1995Ballet National de Marseille
(after Paris Opera Ballet)
Paris Opera Ballet School
Diana Vishneva1996Mariinsky Ballet
Yulia Makhalina1998Mariinsky BalletVaganova Academy
Ulyana Lopatkina1997Mariinsky BalletVaganova Academy
Marie-Claude Pietragalla1998Paris Opera BalletParis Opera Ballet School
Élisabeth Platel1999Paris Opera BalletParis Opera Ballet School
Sue Jin Kang 1999Stuttgart BalletAcadémie de Danse Classique in Monte Carlo
Julie Kent2000American Ballet TheatreAcademy of the Maryland Youth Ballet, School of American Ballet
Alessandra Ferri2000La Scala Theatre Ballet
(after Royal Ballet & American Ballet Theatre)
La Scala Theatre Ballet School
Aurélie Dupont2002Paris Opera BalletParis Opera Ballet School
Anastasia Volochkova2002Mariinsky BalletVaganova Academy
Lucia Lacarra 2003Bayerisches StaatsballettVíctor Ullate School of Danse
Alina Cojocaru[3] 2004Royal BalletKyiv State Ballet School
Svetlana Zakharova 2005Mariinsky BalletVaganova Academy
Marie-Agnès Gillot2005Paris Opera BalletParis Opera Ballet School
Ekaterina Kondaurova2006Mariinsky BalletVaganova Academy
Kim Joo-won2006Korea National BalletBolshoi Ballet Academy
Agnès Letestu2007Paris Opera BalletParis Opera Ballet School
Svetlana Lunkina2007Bolshoi BalletBolshoi Ballet Academy
Tamara Rojo 2008from Royal Ballet
(for the Teatro San Carlo)
Madrid Royal Conservatory of Dance
Silvia Azzoni 2008Hamburg BalletBaletna Skola, Hamburg Ballet School
Natalia Osipova2009Bolshoi BalletBolshoi Ballet Academy
Kirsty Martin2009Australian BalletAustralian Ballet School
Hélène Bouchet 2010Hamburg BalletÉcole supérieure de danse de Cannes Rosella Hightower, École Nationale de Danse de Marseille
Bernice Coppieters 2011Ballets de Monte-Carlo
Zhu Yan2011National Ballet of ChinaBeijing Dance Academy
Alina Cojocaru[4] 2012from Royal Ballet
(for the Hamburg Ballet)
Kyiv State Ballet School
Olga Smirnova2013Bolshoi BalletVaganova Academy
Polina Semionova 2014American Ballet TheatreBolshoi Ballet Academy
Mariko Kida 2014 Royal Swedish BalletSan Francisco Ballet School
Svetlana Zakharova 2015Bolshoi BalletVaganova Academy
Alicia Amatriain 2016 Stuttgart Ballet
Hannah O'Neill 2016Paris Opera BalletAustralian Ballet School
Ludmila Pagliero 2017Paris Opera BalletInstituto Superior de Arte of Teatro Colón
Maria Riccetto2017National Ballet of UruguayUruguay National Ballet School
Sae Eun Park 2018Paris Opera BalletKorea National Academy of Ballet
Elisa Carrillo Cabrera2019Staatsballett BerlinInstituto Nacional de Bellas Artes y Literatura
Ashley Bouder2019New York City BalletSchool of American Ballet
Not Awarded2020
Amandine Albisson2021Paris Opera BalletParis Opera Ballet School
Ekaterina Krysanova2021Bolshoi BalletBolshoi Ballet Academy
Not Awarded2022
Misun Kang2023Universal Ballet, South Korea
Qiu Yunting2023National Ballet of China

Danseurs

Name (Nationality)YearCountryCompanyTraining
Julio Bocca1992Ballet ArgentinoInstituto Superior de Arte of Teatro Colón
Alexander Kølpin1992Royal Danish BalletRoyal Danish Ballet School
Andrei Uvarov1993Bolshoi BalletBolshoi Ballet Academy
Sergei Filin1994Bolshoi BalletBolshoi Ballet Academy
Nicolas Le Riche1995Paris Opera BalletParis Opera Ballet School
Irek Mukhamedov 1996The Royal BalletBolshoi Ballet Academy
Vladimir Derevianko 1996Sächsischen Staatsoper DresdenBolshoi Ballet Academy
Gregor Seyffert1997Komische Oper BerlinBerlin State Ballet School
Farukh Ruzimatov1997Mariinsky BalletVaganova Academy
Manuel Legris1998Paris Opera BalletParis Opera Ballet School
Vladimir Malakhov 1998Stuttgart BalletBolshoi Ballet Academy
Nikolay Tsiskaridze1999Bolshoi BalletBolshoi Ballet Academy
Jean-Guillaume Bart2000Paris Opera BalletParis Opera Ballet School
Ángel Corella 2000American Ballet TheatreVíctor Ullate School of Danse
Jeffrey Gerodias2002Alvin Ailey American Dance TheaterBoston Conservatory, The Ailey School
Jiří Bubeníček 2002Hamburg BalletPrague Dance Conservatory
Lukáš Slavický 2003Bavarian State BalletPrague Dance Conservatory
Laurent Hilaire2004Paris Opera BalletParis Opera Ballet School
Lloyd Riggins 2004Hamburg BalletOrlando Southern Ballet School
Mathieu Ganio2005Paris Opera BalletParis Opera Ballet School
Di Wang2006from Guangzhou Dance company
(for the Nagoya International Ballet and Modern Dance Competition)
Revolutionary Army of China Art College
Leonid Sarafanov2006from Mariinsky Ballet
(for the Vienna State Opera Ballet)
Kyiv State Ballet School
Hervé Moreau2007Paris Opera BalletParis Opera Ballet School
Marcelo Gomes 2008American Ballet TheatreHelena Lobato and Dalal Aschcar Ballet Schools
Carlos Acosta 2008 from The Royal Ballet
(for the Bolshoi Ballet)
Cuban National Ballet School
Ivan Vasiliev2009Bolshoi BalletBelarusian State Choreographic College
Joaquín De Luz 2009New York City BalletVíctor Ullate School of Danse
David Hallberg2010American Ballet TheatreBallet Arizona School
Thiago Bordin 2010Hamburg BalletMannheim Academy of Dance
Fernando Romero2011Lope de Vega TheatreManolo Marín Dance School (Academia de Bailie de Monolo Marin)
Rolando Sarabia 2011Miami City BalletCuban National Ballet School
Semyon Chudin2011Stanislavsky Ballet CompanyNovosibirsk State Ballet School
Mathias Heymann2012Paris Opera BalletParis Opera Ballet School
Carsten Jung2012Hamburg BalletPalucca School of Dance, The School of the Hamburg Ballet
Alban Lendorf2013Royal Danish BalletRoyal Danish Ballet School
Vadim Muntagirov 2013English National BalletPerm Ballet School, Royal Ballet School
Herman Cornejo 2014American Ballet TheatreInstituto Superior de Arte at Teatro Colón
Edward Watson2015The Royal BalletRoyal Ballet School
Kim Kimin 2016Mariinsky BalletKorea National University of Arts
Hugo Marchand2017Paris Opera BalletParis Opera Ballet School
Denis Rodkin2017Bolshoi BalletMoscow State Academic Dance Theatre of Dance Gzhel
Isaac Hernández 2018English National BalletThe Rock School for Dance Education
Vladislav Lantratov2018Bolshoi BalletBolshoi Ballet Academy
Vadim Muntagirov 2019The Royal BalletPerm Ballet School, Royal Ballet School
Not awarded2020
Jesus Carmona2021Compañia Jesús Carmona
Not awarded2022
Hugo Marchand2023Paris Opera Ballet

Choreographers

Name (Nationality)YearCountryCompanyTraining
John Neumeier 1992Hamburg BalletVera Volkova, Royal Ballet School
Jiří Kylián 1993Nederlands Dans TheatrePrague Dance Conservatory, Royal Ballet School
Roland Petit1994from Ballet National de Marseille
(for the Staatsoper Unter den Linden)
Paris Opera Ballet School
Angelin Preljocaj1995from Ballet Preljocaj
(for the Paris Opera Ballet)
Schola Cantorum
Valentin Elizariev1996National Academic Bolshoi Ballet of BelarusVaganova Leningrad Academic Choreographic School
Carolyn Carlson 1998from Atelier de Paris-Carolyn Carlson
(for the Paris Opera Ballet)
San Francisco Ballet School
Davide Bombana1998from Maggio Danza Company
(for Bayerisches Staatsballett)
La Scala Theatre Ballet School
Jiří Kylián 1999Nederlands Dans TheatrePrague Dance Conservatory, Royal Ballet School
Nacho Duato2000Spanish National Dance CompanyRambert School, Maurice Béjart’s Mudra School, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater
David Dawson2003Dutch National BalletRoyal Ballet School
Édouard Lock2003from La La La Human Steps
(for the Paris Opera Ballet)
Paul Lightfoot & Sol León2004Nederlands Dans Theatre
Alexei Ratmansky2005[5] from Bolshoi Ballet
(for the Royal Danish Ballet)
Bolshoi Ballet Academy
Boris Eifman2006from Boris Eifman Ballet
(for the St Petersburg Ballet Theatre)
Saint Petersburg Conservatory
Martin Schläpfer 2007Ballet MainzRoyal Ballet School
Jean-Christophe Maillot 2008Ballets de Monte-CarloÉcole supérieure de danse de Cannes Rosella Hightower
Wayne McGregor2009Royal BalletJosé Limón School
José Martínez 2009Paris Opera BalletÉcole supérieure de danse de Cannes Rosella Hightower
and Paris Opera Ballet School
Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui
and Damien Jalet
2011Eastman CompanyPerforming Arts Research and Training Studios
and Institut National Supérieur des Arts du Spectacle
Jorma Elo 2011from Boston Ballet
(for Vienna State Opera Ballet and Stanislavsky Ballet Company)
Finnish National Ballet School, Vaganova Academy
Lar Lubovitch2012Lar Lubovitch Dance CompanyJuilliard School
Hans van Manen2013Dutch National BalletSonia Gaskell, Françoise Adret
Christopher Wheeldon2013Royal BalletRoyal Ballet School
Alexei Ratmansky 2014 American Ballet TheatreBolshoi Ballet Academy
Christopher Wheeldon2015Royal BalletRoyal Ballet School
Inger Johan 2016 Nederlands Dans Theater
Yuri Possokhov2016Bolshoi BalletBolshoi Ballet Academy
Crystal Pite2017from Kidd Pivot
(for the Paris Opera Ballet)
The School of Toronto Dance Theatre
Deborah Colker2018Deborah Colker Company
Yuri Possokhov2018Bolshoi BalletBolshoi Ballet Academy

By categories

NumberCountry
23
21
16
11
9
6
2

1
NumberCountryLaureate's company
16Paris Opera Ballet
10Bolshoi Ballet
8Mariinsky Ballet
7Hamburg Ballet
7Royal ballet
5American Ballet Theatre
4Dutch National Ballet
3Nederlands Dans Theatre
3Stuttgart Ballet
2National Ballet of Cuba
2Ballet National de Marseille
2Ballets de Monte Carlo
NumberCountryMain training school[6]
20Paris Opera Ballet School
12Bolshoi Ballet Academy
9Vaganova Academy
5Royal Ballet School
4Víctor Ullate School of Danse
3Kyiv State Ballet School
2La Scala Theatre Ballet School
2School of American Ballet
2École supérieure de danse de Cannes Rosella Hightower
2Hamburg Ballet School

Footnotes

  1. http://benois.theatre.ru/english/participants/laureates Prix Benois de la Danse, Laureates
  2. repeat prize winner
  3. repeat prize winner
  4. repeat prize winner
  5. to be verified since he was ballet master of the Bolshoi Ballet from 2004 to 2009
  6. annual curriculum only

External links