The public final was held on Saturday 6 June 2026 at 6pm at the Théâtre de la Gare du Midi in Biarritz, in front of a packed house.
The finalist choreographers benefited from two days of training to support them in their project.
The Young Ballet Choreographers Competition is experiencing significant growth, confirming both its relevance and the existence of a particularly rich pool of young choreographers committed to Ballet, in France, in Europe and internationally.
Over the course of five editions, and despite demanding selection criteria¹, the number of applications has grown significantly: 32 candidates in 2016, 40 in 2018, 66 in 2022, 56 in 2024 and 140 in 2026. The number of applications has thus more than doubled compared to the previous edition and has multiplied more than fourfold since the competition's first edition in 2016.
As in previous editions, selecting the six finalists proved particularly difficult for Bruno Bouché, Thierry Malandain and Eric Quilleré, given the quality and diversity of the artistic proposals received.
The profiles of the 140 candidates reflect the diversity and international scope of the competition:
• 38% women and 62% men;
• more than 25 nationalities represented, with a strong presence of candidates from Italy, France, Spain, the United States and the United Kingdom;
• an average age of 31.6 years;
• diverse professional situations: 18% independent artists, 38% dancers engaged within companies or Ballets, and 44% with hybrid or transitional career paths.
Several candidates also come from leading Ballet companies and opera houses, including the Royal Swedish Ballet, the Latvian National Ballet, the Opéra national de Paris, the CCN • Ballet de l'Opéra national du Rhin, Opera Ballet Vlaanderen, the Baltic Opera Ballet of Gdańsk, Bern Ballett, and the New National Theatre Tokyo, as well as numerous German opera houses, including Staatsballett Hannover and Ballett Schwerin.
This diversity of nationalities, backgrounds and institutions represented confirms the competition's international reach and professional standing. It also reflects the vitality and inventiveness of a new generation of choreographers, at the crossroads of ballet, and neoclassical and contemporary writing.
The very strong growth in the number of applications for this fifth edition is thus a particularly significant indicator of the appeal the competition has gained since its creation, and of its growing recognition by young choreographers and dance professionals as a means of supporting the development of their artistic careers.
¹ To apply, candidates were required to submit a video of a choreography featuring at least two or three dancers, a statement of intent, and their artistic CV.
As in the first four editions, the jury was made up of the three directors of the Ballets organizing the Competition, chaired by Thierry Malandain. They were joined by:
– Iratxe Ansa, Director of Metamorphosis Dance
– Isabel Bischof, Artistic Director of Bern Ballett (Switzerland)
– Ana Isabel Casquilho, 2024 Jury Prize – Young Ballet Choreographers Competition, resident choreographer at Ballett Schwerin (Germany)
– Martin Harriague, Director of Ballet de l'Opéra Grand Avignon
– Sabrina Sadowska, Director of Chemnitz Ballet (Germany)
– Beate Vollack, Director of Dance at the Opéra national du Capitole de Toulouse
Artistic Director, CCN • Ballet de l'Opéra national du Rhin
Director and choreographer of the CCN Malandain Ballet Biarritz
Director of Dance at the Opéra National de Bordeaux
Franco-Italian, 24 years old. A dancer and choreographer, Noémi currently works with the Paris Dance Project and Ballet D'Jerri. She previously performed with the CCN · Ballet de l'Opéra national du Rhin, then with ŻfinMalta – Malta's national dance company.
Dutch, 24 years old. A dancer, choreographer and freelance teacher, Zoë now moves between creative projects and teaching after being an apprentice at Nederlands Dans Theater 2. She has also collaborated with IID Company, the Dutch National Ballet Junior Company and several European festivals.
Armenian, based in Germany, 37 years old. An Armenian choreographer and interdisciplinary artist, Lilit is currently based in Berlin. A former dancer with the Hanover Ballet, she develops a choreographic language nourished by film and the visual arts. Awarded a prize at the 2024 Hanover competition for her piece ‹ LUCK ›, she now creates works for several European companies.
Italian, 28 years old. A dancer with the Ballet de l'Opéra national du Capitole de Toulouse, Lorenzo also pursues a choreographic practice alongside his dancing. Before joining the Capitole, he danced with Ballet de Catalunya in Barcelona and then with the Croatian National Ballet in Zagreb.
Italian, 23 years old. A freelance dancer and choreographer based in the Netherlands, Nnamdi currently develops his own creative and performance projects. Trained at Professione Danza Parma and then at Codarts Rotterdam, he previously collaborated with Balletto di Parma, Stuttgart Ballet, National Ballet of Canada and the Dutch National Ballet Junior Company.
Italian, 31 years old. A dancer with the Ballet de l'Opéra National de Bordeaux, Riccardo also pursues his own choreographic work. He previously performed with the Teatro dell'Opera di Roma and then the Teatro San Carlo di Napoli.
Creation Commissions and Residencies
The jury awarded six creation commissions and residencies to the finalists:
– Lilit Hakobyan (piece LUCK): Creation Prize from the Ballet de l'Opéra national de Bordeaux and Creation Prize from Ballett Schwerin
– Zoë Greten (piece IGNIS): Creation Prize from the CCN Ballet de l'Opéra national du Rhin
– Noemi Andreotti Coin (piece Some Things No-One Expected): Creation Prize from the Capitole de Toulouse and Creation Prize from Ballet Theater Chemnitz
– Nnamdi Nwagwu (piece Le Prefiche): Residency Prize from the Ballet de l'Opéra Grand Avignon
– Lorenzo Misuri (piece Mizu): Residency Prize from the Conservatorio Superior de Danza de Madrid María de Ávila
Each laureate choreographs a 20-minute piece for 10 to 20 dancers during a one-month residency within the partner Ballet.
Each ballet provides its own dancers, a rehearsal studio and the necessary staff to welcome the dancers, and takes charge of costume and accessory manufacture, as well as lighting design (no or minimal scenery).
Each creation is presented during the official season of the Ballet offering the residency. In each city, the host Ballet may complete the program.
Biarritz Prize
Endowed with 15,000 €, this prize was awarded by the grand jury during the final to Riccardo Zuddas for his piece Le Quattro Stagioni.
Professionals' Prize/ Fondation pour la Danse Thierry Malandain - Académie des beaux-arts
Endowed with 5,000 €, this prize was awarded by the dance critics and theater directors present at the final to Lilit Hakobyan for her piece LUCK.
Audience Prize
Endowed with 3,000 €, this prize was awarded by the audience present at the final to Lilit Hakobyan for her piece LUCK.
Pass Culture Prize
Endowed with 1,000 €, this prize, awarded by a jury of 8 young people aged 18 to 20, was given to Nnamdi Nwagwu for his piece Le Prefiche.
