Students of the Jerusalem Ballet School Winners of the La Nuit des Étoiles Competition

Three students of Nadya Timofeeva and Martin Schönberg from our Jerusalem Ballet School secured all three top prizes at the La Nuits des Étoiles competition, organized by the French Confédération Nationale de Danse (CND). The event took place yesterday, February 15, at the Suzanne Dellal Center in Tel Aviv.

To join the constellation of La Nuits des Étoiles, one had to submit a video to Paris for evaluation by the CND. The artistic director and chair of the jury was the renowned dancer and teacher Réjane Losno-Tobelem, who oversees competitions in Israel for the Confédération Nationale de Danse.

According to Ms. Losno-Tobelem, she has spent the past year fundraising across Europe to support and promote Israeli dancers. This idea came to her after October 7. Réjane spent a long time considering how to support aspiring Israeli ballet dancers, leading to the decision to establish monetary awards and scholarships that would enable them to train in summer programs across various European cities.

In the Classical Ballet category, the top prize was won by a student of the Jerusalem Ballet School under Nadya Timofeeva’s artistic direction. The winner, 19-year-old Noa Levi, performed variations from Tchaikovsky's Sleeping Beauty in Petipa's choreography. The second prize went to 21-year-old Alisa Zeldin, who performed the La Cigarette variation from Édouard Lalo's Suite en Blanc in Serge Lifar's choreography. The jury awarded the third prize to 17-year-old Avital Barsukov, who chose to perform variations from Minkus' Don Quixote in Petipa's choreography for the competition.

The Les nuits des Étoiles competition was founded in France by former members of Maurice Béjart’s company and the Grand Opéra, who united under the Confédération Nationale de Danse. It takes place in France, Italy, and Spain, with Israel joining last year— a new continent in the choreographic archipelago.

💫 Let’s congratulate our winners! 💫

Nadya Timofeeva