Romanian ballet dancer, among the Prix de Lausanne 2020 winners

Romanian ballet dancer Matei Holeleu (pictured first to the left) is one of the eight winners of this year’s Prix de Lausanne competition. At the same event, he also won the Best Swiss Candidate Prize.

The Prix de Lausanne competition is open to young dancers of all nationalities, aged 15 to 18, who are not yet professionals. Its goal is to discover, promote and support the finest talents. More than 70 of the world’s most prestigious dance schools and companies are associated with the Prix de Lausanne and support its activities.

Out of the 84 initially selected candidates, 77 took part in the competition week and 21 of them reached the finals. The jury, presided this year by the ballet director of Milan’s Teatro alla Scala, selected the eight prize winners, who were awarded a scholarship at one of the partner schools or companies of the Prix de Lausanne.

All of this year's winners are listed here.

Eighteen-year old Matei Holeleu is a native of Cluj-Napoca, a city in western Romania. He studied at the Octavian Stroia Coreography and Dramatic Arts High School in Cluj-Napoca. He is currently enrolled at the Ballet School Theater Basel, Hotnews.ro reported.

In 1997, Romanian ballerina Alina Cojocaru won at the same competition. She later went on to become a first ballerina of the Royal Opera House. In 2017, another Romanian ballerina, Diana Ionescu also won at the Lausanne competition. She is currently dancing with the Stuttgart Ballet.

(Photo: prixdelausanne.org)