25 years of the Prix de Lausanne.

Founding an international dance competition and fine-tuning it to keep up with the developments in the field over a period of twenty-five years is quite an achievement. Philippe Braunschweig and his wife, Elvire, did just that.

Braunschweig became interested in dance as a young man, although he never had any intention of becoming a dancer. He did, however, take some ballet lessons. His wife, a Russian dancer, further piqued his interest in the art form.

He noticed that, despite an evergrowing number of international dance competitions, little was being done financially to assist young dance students to attend professional level dance schools. This was particularly the case with students at small regional ballet schools. In spite of the interest and devotion of their teachers, it was virtually impossible to create the some training environment as that of the professional level schools where a number of equally talented young students of the some age learn together.

Thus, in 1972, Braunschweig founded the Prix de Lausanne, first and foremost to make it financially possible for young students from regional ballet schools to study at internationally renowned institutes.

He started by approaching Rosella Hightower and Maurice Bejart. Both were delighted with his idea and in no time drew up the rules for the Prix de Lausanne.

What started twenty-five years ago as a small event has grown into an internationally acclaimed institution which draws candidates from all over the world. Because of the great demand by Japanese students to study abroad, an office was also set up in Japan. In addition, the organization has arranged for the finals to be held in other locations at times: New York City in 1985, Tokyo in 1989, and Moscow in 1995.

When Braunschweig announced his forthcoming resignation, at the end of the Prix in 1 996, he expressed concern that an organization of this caliber should not depend on just one person. True to his character, he worked extremely hard to present a solution at the twenty-fifth anniversary of the competition: As of March 1, 1997, the Secretary of State of Switzerland, Franz Blankart, took on full responsibility, seconded by an artistic committee headed by Jan Nuyts, who has worked with the Prix for many years. Charles Gebhard is in charge of finances and Patricia Leroy heads the actual organization. Both Philippe and Elvire Braunschweig remain available as consultants.

This year, to round off the Braunschweig era, a symposium was organized to occur simultaneously with the Prix, entitled "What is the Future of Classical Dance?" It was attended by critics and important figures in the dance world.

It would seem that with all these serious changes and events taking place, the competition itself might have gotten crushed. To the contrary -- eighty-seven girls and tvventy-two boys, representing twenty-eight countries, arrived in Lausanne to participate.

Directly after registration, they attended a contemporary class given by Samuel Wuersten. This class, as well as the classical and contemporary classes the next day, were not watched by the jury. On day three of the competition the jury began to watch classes. Since the preparation and initial elimination are watched only by the jury, it is hard to tell precisely how the jury comes to its final decision.

Braunschweig addressed everyone on arrival, saying that candidates had come from all over the world with high hopes of reaching the semifinals, or even the finals. He pointed out that just coming to the Prix was important in itself and would be an eye-opener, revealing what is happening in the world of dance. He advised competitors who did not reach the semifinals to think about how much the study of dance means to them, in order to either carry on or to focus in a different direction. He added that participating would make the students realize that their time given to dance would be beneficial in whatever career they might choose.

The candidates soon realized just how true his words were: Only thirty candidates can enter the semifinals and a mere fifteen the finals. From the first day, the question of who would remain consistent enough to reach the end of the competition loomed over the competitors.

Two girls from the U.S. immediately drew attention -- fifteen-year-old Melissa Wishinski from the Hartford School of Ballet and seventeen-year-old Lyn Tally from the Harid Conservatory in Boca Raton, Florida. Both demonstrated solid technique and plenty of determination, as did Mayo Sugano from Japan, who studies at the Academy of Colorado Ballet. All three reached the finals and won, respectively, the Prix de Lausanne Especes (cash prize), Prix Niveau Professionel (professional), and Prix de Lausanne Bourse (scholarship).

The Gold Medal was not awarded this year. The all-around level of technique was even, and exercises and steps were executed with proficiency. Although every candidate -- including the boys -- could do a developed a la seconde near the ear, arabesques were sadly misunderstood, as was everything in Fourth Position en arriere. There was also some strange and dubious use of port de bras.

The presentation and interpretation of the required "free solo" variation has always been questionable in competitions such as the Prix de Lausanne. A new rule this year tried to ameliorate the situation but was not strictly enforced. The new rule stated that a delegation of the jury would attend the dress rehearsal to decide whether the variations were in compliance with the competition rules. Either this attendance did not take place or the rules were misunderstood, since turned-in knees, even when on pointe, or frolickings and acrobatics can hardly be accepted as an artistic achievement in a competition of this caliber.

The Prix de Lausanne is one of only a few competitions that con rely on live television coverage of the finals. Over the years, this has not only widened interest in the competition, it has also provided the Prix des Telespectateurs (TV Spectator-prize), which this year was awarded to seventeen-year-old Antonio Carmena from the Royal Conservatory of Madrid. Carmena also came out on top in the scholarships, and plans to use his prize money at the School of American Ballet.

To highlight the twenty-fifth anniversary, former prizewinners were invited to perform and offered a good impression of the high standards of the competition. Bernice Coppieters (1988) and Ben Huys (1985) danced a pas de deux from Agon. As Jose Martinez was indisposed, Katarzyna Gdaniec (1983) stepped in and danced an excerpt from Alma with Paola Cantalupo (1977). Gold medalist Diana Vishneva (1994) and Gold Medalist Carlos Acosta (1990) stopped the show with a brilliantly danced Corsaire Pas de Deux.

At the end of the performance Rosella Hightower accepted the Gold Medal, awarded by the Friends of the Prix de Lausanne. The Braunschweigs thanked her for her constant support. Everyone present realized that they were watching a page being turned in the book of dance history. Many of the dancers reflected on what attending the Prix de Lausanne hod meant to their start in a professional career. Undoubtedly, Braunschweig hopes that many more will be able to do so in the years to come.

Two weeks later, Braunschweig was awarded the German Dance Prize in Essen. This honorary prize was created in 1983 by the German Dance Teachers Organization and has been bestowed on Pina Bausch, Maurice Bejart, Marcia Haydee, Horst Koegler, Hans van Manen, John Neumeier, and Jose Udaeta.