New York International Ballet Competition
212 956 1520
nyibc@nyibc.org
"The week of performances that the public sees is, in a sense, only the tip of the competition iceberg."
Ilona Copen in 'A Ballet Competition Tries to Quell Competitive Urges' by Jack Anderson The New York Times, June 21, 1993
"The ultimate equal opportunity competition."
Ilona Copen in 'From the Other Side of the Stage: Mazzarelli's Return to NYIBC' by Jennifer Stahl Dance Magazine, June 2007
Overview
New York International Ballet Competition (NYIBC), is a unique program providing dance education and employment opportunities for young dancers ages 17 to 24. NYIBC is held every two years at Frederick P. Rose Hall, home of Jazz at Lincoln Center in the Time Warner Building. The 11th NYIBC will take place June 4 to 24, 2012.
Unlike any other dance education program or competition, NYIBC fully funds forty-eight invited dancers for their entire three-week stay in New York City. This provides an equal opportunity across socio-economic and cultural lines, allowing dancers from every ethnicity and financial situation to completely focus on training to perform at their highest artistic level.
NYIBC's format distinguishes it from all other international ballet competitions. On arrival, the dancers learn what repertory they will dance. During the next two weeks, world-renowned teachers and coaches teach all the dancers the same three pas de deux, two classical pas de deux and one contemporary. The study program is completed the third week when the dancers perform before an illustrious panel of international judges. After each round, the dancers with the highest scores advance. NYIBC closes with a Gala Performance, danced by medal winners, selected dancers from this year's NYIBC, and distinguished alumni.
Mission
NYIBC’s mission is to discover the world's finest young ballet dancers, ages 17 to 24, provide them with an extraordinary educational, mentoring and cultural experience; advance their careers by producing performances in New York City; and promote international understanding and goodwill.
Participation
NYIBC begins with two weeks of technique classes and the learning and rehearsing of two classical and one contemporary pas de deux. The repertoire, chosen from our rich dance heritage, is taught by world-renowned teachers and coaches. They are masters of their profession. In teaching the repertoire, they pass their artistry of classical ballet to this younger generation. The opportunity to learn such outstanding repertoire from such extraordinary artists provides the dancers with professional training they could not receive elsewhere.
A typical day during the first two weeks consists of all the dancers taking a technique class together from 9:30am to 11:00am. The dancers are then split into three groups. The groups rotate every two days. At the end of the week they have worked with the three coaches and learned the three pas de deux. The rehearsal day is from 11am to 6pm. Sunday they rest.
The study program is completed the third week when the dancers showcase their talents by performing the learned repertoire at Lincoln Center. Audiences delight in the unique format of NYIBC. Because the dancers perform the same repertoire, the audience becomes familiar with the choreography and music of each pas de deux. They learn to differentiate and appreciate the artistic and cultural nuances each dancer brings to each piece.
NYIBC attracts the best in ballet to adjudicate. Each year NYIBC pays tribute to a member of the dance community at the NYIBC Gala.
Since the first NYIBC in 1984, more than half the participating dancers have been offered contracts with major national and international companies. They have gone on to shine with the foremost companies in the United States and abroad, including American Ballet Theatre, New York City Ballet, Royal Ballet, Paris Opera Ballet, Stuttgart Ballet, National Ballet of Canada, Royal Danish Ballet, Frankfurt Ballet, Joffrey Ballet, and Feld Ballets/NY, among many others.
The following is a partial list of past NYIBC participants and where they are now:
1984 - Victoria Mazzarelli, Associate Artistic Director, Nutmeg Conservatory for the Arts
1984 - Alexandre Proia,Freelance Teacher and Choreographer but in the process of starting Proia Dance Theater
1987 - Kenneth Greve, Artistic Director, Finnish National Ballet
1987 - José Manuel Carréno, Principal, American Ballet Theatre
1987 - Maximiliano Guerra, Principal, Teatro alla Scala di Milano
1987 - Xin Li Li, Artistic Director, Shanghai Ballete
1987 - Anders Nordström, Principal, Royal Swedish Ballet
1987 - Yang Xin Hua, Director, Shanghai Ballet School
1990 - Barry Hughson, Executive Director, Boston Ballet
1990 - Diliana Nikitorova, Prima Ballerina, National Ballet of Bulgaria
1990 - Silvina Perillo, Teotro Colon
1993 - Bernard Courtot de Bouteiller, Choreographer, Jeunesse Classique Ballet
1993 - Boris de Leeuw, Teacher, Amsterdamse Hogeschool voor de Kunsten
1996 - Carlos Molina, Principal, Boston Ballet
1996 - Gillian Murphy, Principal, American Ballet Theatre
2000 - Mikhail Ilyin, Principal, Miami City Ballet
2000 - Sarah Lamb, Principal, Royal Ballet
2003 - Cesar Morales, First Soloist, English National Ballet
2003 - Ludmilla Pagliero, Paris Opera Ballet
2003 - Christopher Rickert, Royal Danish Ballet
2003 - Victoria Jaiani, Joffrey Ballet
2005 - Joseph Gatti, Soloist, Cincinatti Ballet
2005 - Gleidson Soares Vasconcelos, Soloist, Royal Winnipeg Ballet
2007 - Eun-Ji Ha, Principal Dancer, Finnish National Ballet
2007 - Wu Husheng, Principal Dancer, Shanghai Ballet
2007 - Artyom Maksakov, First Soloist, Estonian National Ballet
For a complete listing of NYIBC alumni, Click Here.