05 September 2014, Friday

Olga Smirnova, the Bolshoi Ballet's soloist, was awarded the Leonide Massine Prize

Olga Smirnova, the Bolshoi Ballet's soloist, was awarded the annual Positano Leonide Massine Prize. This Prize was instituted to mark the memory of the Russian choreographer that became very famous in the West and whose brilliant career started at the Bolshoi Theatre in the early 20th century. Olga Smirnova became a laureate in the category "Best dancer of the year on the international stage". The award ceremony and the gala-concert will take place on September 6th. There will be one innovation this year: a new award will appear in the long list of prizes that are awarded in Positano. This new award - Premio Benois-Massine Mosca-Positano - will symbolize the union of the Leonide Massine Prize and the Moscow Prix Benois de la Danse. It will be awarded to Mariko Kida, the Royal Swedish Ballet soloist, who was awarded the Prix Benois de la Danse at the Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow this May. The jury of the Leonide Massine Prize-2014 included famous critics and journalists: Roger Salas ("El PaГ­s", Spain), Valentina Bonelli ("Vogue", Italy), Tatiana Kuznetsova ("Kommersant", Russia), Judith Mackrell ("The Guardian", the UK) and Wendy Perron ("Dance Magazine", the USA).