The annual ballet and contemporary dance competition, Dance Prix Indonesia is back and showcases talented dancers across the region. As an international emerging genre, the fourth edition of Dance Prix Indonesia has invited Italian ballet dancers to hit the stage at the Jakarta Art Building this weekend.
Photo by Raditya Fadilla/NOW!JAKARTA.
Presented by Indonesia Dance Society, this year’s Dance Prix Indonesia collaborates with the Embassy of Italy and Italian Cultural Institute Jakarta. A total of 350,000 participants from Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore will compete in two main categories, ballet and contemporary.
Divided into solo and group subcategories, this year’s Grand Prix turns the spotlight on both junior and senior dancers by adding five dance variations.
Juliana Tanjo, the founder of Grand Prix Indonesia said the competition aims to connect dancers around Indonesia and provide them the opportunity to learn from their peers and also give them the opportunity to be professional dancers.
“We see improvements every year during the competition. We want them to be able to perform on the international stage by providing them the right education and by sharing knowledge, including the collaboration with Italian Cultural Institute. We added the junior subcategories after we saw an increase by around 20 percent among junior participants,” Juliana Tanjo, who is also the director of Indonesia Dance Society, said.
The contenders will be judging by a renowned panel of judges including former principal dancer of the Royal New Zealand Ballet, Simon Pointon; principal of Singapore Ballet Academy, Han Kee Juan and former principal dancer with Ekaterinburg State Ballet, Russia,Maria Sascha Khan.
As the biggest ballet and contemporary dance competition in Indonesia, Grand Prix offers Indonesian students opportunities to develop their careers and strengthen their skills. They have the chance to win cash prizes and scholarships to the Singapore Ballet Academy, Universal Ballet in South Korea, Ena Ballet Studio in Japan, and V Chabukiani Tbilisi Ballet State School in Georgia.
The winner of the Jury’s Choice Awards will also receive cash prizes and prestigious scholarships to the Ballet Legacy master Class in the United States.
Italian Ballet
As part of a reciprocal collaboration, two Italian principal dancers of Teatro dell’Opera di Roma, Claudio Cocino and Susanna Salvi, will perform a contemporary choreography of Stabat Mater by Benjamin Pech and classical ballet piece Sleeping Beauty Grand pas de deux on the final night, 14 April.
Italian Ambassador to Indonesia. H.E. Vittorio Sandalli said the collaboration opens the learning process both for the Indonesian and Italian dancer. Italian ballet and contemporary dance have sophisticated techniques and unique characteristics, rooted in the cultures of Rome, Milan, and Florence since the 18th century.
“We hope that the competition can link cultures more. The Italian Embassy has entered agreements with the Indonesian government to promote the creative industry, including through ballet,” Sandalli added.
Tickets are priced starting from IDR 180,000 (USD 13) and can be purchased by contacting Julie’s Dance Shop via +62 21 3000303 or +62 8187 8300 10303. For more information, visit www.indonesiadancesociety.com
