Prix Benois Nominations & Winners, 2018

[assoluta]

On 12/06/2018 at 10:16, annamicro said:

Unfortunately in too many editions I had the suspect that the prize has become an exchange of favours between directors (two of them especially) and I have lost most of my interest in it.

 

My view of the Benois de la danse award is precisely that: "an exchange of favours between directors". If the nominees and winners are indeed outstanding, consider it pure luck. For this reason I consider Benois de la danse to be a pretext to have a show of grossly varying quality.

[Sophoife]

Just to comment: in 2009, the previous time Australian Ballet's AD was on the jury, for the first time ever two Australian Ballet dancers were nominated (Kirsty Martin - who won - and Adam Bull). This time around, AB's AD on the jury, bingo! Two Australian Ballet dancers nominated (Ako Kondo and Kevin Jackson). Do not understand why Kondo, in particular, is being nominated for awards left, right and centre as Wheeldon's Alice as when I saw her (twice) she was...less than arresting.

 

IIRC from 2009, pretty much all the jury members had been able to see most of the nominees dance live, and it was commented upon by several that it was the first time in their memories that a dancer had won an award purely based on video presentation (Martin).

 

Interesting that three years in a row Paris Opera Ballet has produced a female winner (Hannah O'Neill, Ludmila Pagliero and Sae-Eun Park), with Hugo Marchand as a male winner in 2017. Jury members from POB in those years were Marie-Agnès Gillot and José Martinez (listed as France but presumably as AD of Compañia Nacional de Danza), Brigitte Lefèvre and Manuel Legris (listed as France but hopefully as AD of Vienna State Ballet), and Nicolas Le Riche and Eleonora Abbagnato (both listed as France, both ADs of companies outside France i.e. Sweden and Rome)...conspiracy alert!! 🤣