“Many young and skilled people around the world finish ballet schools each year. This is a very important moment of their lives. After many hours and years of hard work, after many sacrifices, they achieve what they were working for – the dance diploma. Golden Pointe Shoes is a great opportunity to prove themselves, to show their abilities and it’s also a chance to kickstart their careers”-

– says Paulina Andrzejewska-Damiecka, the director of the competition.

Since April, ballet school graduates from around the world can apply for The XIV Golden Pointe Shoes 2021 Online. Schools from Germany, Czech Republic, Italy, Spain, USA, Singapore and Poland have confirmed their participation so far. Young dancers can submit their application forms, together with 3 video recordings, until 5 June. They can apply individually or by their ballet school, through the official application form at:

Golden Pointe Shoes – XIV INTERNATIONAL BALLET CONTEST

http://goldenpointeshoes.com/en/

Jury and the competition stages

“Pandemic doesn’t help with cultural events and ballet competitions are no exception here. It’s a hard and painful time for young artists. That’s why we’re making the competition happen. We want to get the students out of the claws of the pandemic, let them take a breath and give them hope, a chance for a great adventure and for a high reward”-

– says Beata Ksiazkiewicz, the president of The Jury team.

This year’s jury will consist of renowned teachers, dancers and choreographers, including such personalities as professor Beata Ksiazkiewicz – the president of the jury, Rosa Olympia Estrella –

Spanish choreographer and flamenco dancer, Ewa Wycichowska – professor of musical arts, Michal Krčmář – leading principal dancer of The Finnish National Opera, Piotr Nardelli – a teacher and dancer, and also a ballet

master Vladimir Issaev. The competition will be hosted entirely online. The Jury will evaluate submitted recordings in two stages. During the first one, they’ll rate the classical and contemporary dance, which will determine a group qualified for the second stage. During the second one, the jury will choose five winners and their dances will be available to watch on a streaming platform on 20 June 2021.

Shoko Nakamura and Wieslaw Dudek — the ambassadors of The Golden Pointe Shoes 2021

The icon of The Japanese ballet and the Polish dancer of international fame are the ambassadors of The Golden Pointe Shoes. The greatest artistic duet of world-class dancers and teachers has decided to support young talents this year. Both Shoko Nakamura and Wieslaw Dudek have begun their careers at ballet competitions. She won Prix De Lausanne, he became the winner of The Golden Pointe Shoes. Their experience and working along young dancers helps them to understand how important it can be to present skills and abilities while being a dancer. That’s why they’ve joined The Golden Pointe Shoes as the ambassadors.

“We’re glad that we can be a part of this competition. You have to believe in the next generations, wish them to fulfil their dancing dreams which they pursue every day, despite the circumstances, and most of all, give them a chance for artistic development”-

– say Shoko Nakamura and Wieslaw Dudek, the ambassadors of The Golden Pointe Shoes 2021.

Martina Conti

Michal Krčmář, Martina Conti, Gergo Armin Balazsi, Daria Olefirenko — the winners of the previous editions

Golden Pointe Shoes is a very popular competition in the ballet community. It began almost 20 years ago. In the beginning, it was meant only for the students of Polish schools, but since 2008 it gathers the best young dancers from around the world. Among the previous winners are Marcin Kupinski, the principal dancer of The Royal Danish Ballet, Dawid Kupinski, first soloist of the Swedish Royal Ballet, Daria Olefirenko, soloist of Lithuanian National Opera, Michal Krčmář, the leading principal dancer of The Finnish National Opera, Martina Conti, the regular dancer of San Marino and London, Gergo Armin Balazsi, the principal dancer of The Hungarian State Opera, Viktoria Nowak, the winner of Eurovision competition for The Young Dancers in 2015.

Until now, the competition gala took its place in Poland, but due to the pandemic, the whole competition, including the finale, will be hosted online.

This year we would like to get to the wider audience. To reach those who are sensitive to art’s beauty,

to those who love dance and music, but also to those, who search for a new inspiration and emotions. The fact that we have to organize our event remotely limits us a lot, but on the other hand, it allows us to invite everyone to admire the performances of the young dancers from the entire world. We’re sure that the talent of the graduates is worth sharing-

says Paulina Andrzejewska-Damiecka, the director of The Competition.

You can find more information at www.goldenpointeshoes.com and also on Facebook @goldenpointeshoes or Instagram @golden_pointe_shoes.

Contact:

Mateusz Tymoszewski

mat@goldenpointeshoes.com

phone numer: +48 507 170 541

The Ballet Foundation (Fundacja Balet) actively supports the development of ballet and the other stage arts in Poland and abroad for 30 years. It undertakes multidimensional actions which aim to support artistically talented children and youth. It patronizes, supports and grants impresario services. In 2002 it was the first time when The Foundation has organized a national competition for The Best Polish Ballet School Graduate, which 6 years later has become the international Golden Pointe Shoes, dedicated for the graduates from the entire world. Golden Pointe Shoes is a prestigious competition meant for ballet school graduates. Since 2002, 19 winners have been chosen, and thanks to that, they could begin their professional careers in theatres and opera houses around the world. The winners of The Golden Pointe Shoes are suchpersons as Marcin Krajewski, Michal Krčmář, Ida Nowakowska, Martina Conti, Matej Sust, Gergo Armin Balazsi and Victoria Nowak.