The delegation from the Hungarian Dance University also participated in the 53rd edition of the Prix de Lausanne international ballet competition in Switzerland. The Hungarian Dance University, which organized the Budapest Ballet Grand Prix (BBGP) for the third time this November, is a partner school of the Prix de Lausanne. Therefore it is no coincidence that the university and the leaders of the BBGP attended the competition.
The Prix de Lausanne was founded in 1973 by Philippe Braunschweig, a Swiss industrialist, and his wife, Elvire. Although Philippe was not a dancer, he developed an interest in dance at a young age. His wife, a Russian dancer, further fueled his passion, leading them to create the event, which is aimed at young dancers who aspire to pursue a professional career as classical ballet artists. It is no coincidence that many former prizewinners of the competition are now leading stars in the world’s top ballet companies.
The Prix de Lausanne international ballet competition, which ran until 9 February, was attended by Márta Fodor-Molnár, university professor, Rector of the Hungarian Dance University and Chair of the BBGP Organizing Committee, János Kiss, Kossuth Prize-winning ballet artist, President of the Board of Trustees of the university and Co-Chair of the BBGP Organizing Committee, Tamás Nagy, Harangozó Gyula Award-winning ballet artist, Chair of the university’s Artistic Council and Competition Director of the BBGP, and Tamás Csizmadia, ballet artist, recently appointed Head of the university’s Artistic Management. Alongside them, we should also not forget Levente Bajusz, who participated in the 2025 choreographer project for partner schools.
We asked Tamás Nagy to share a brief travel diary about the event.
“It was wonderful to be there again and to meet the young artists and many former colleagues and peers who accompany them. I had the opportunity to participate in many interesting and professionally high-level events. I saw classes led by the fantastic Yoel Carreno, a stage rehearsal with last year’s BBGP jury member, Federico Bonelli, who worked on variations with the male contestants, and of course, I was here for the junior and senior category preliminaries as well.”
