Prix de Lausanne

The Prix de Lausanne is an international competition for young dancers that has been held annually in Lausanne since 1973. The SAPA Foundation is responsible for archiving the associated holdings and preserves numerous collections of documents relating to this competition. In connection with the exhibition Envol. Le Prix de Lausanne, 50 years of dance, which will be shown at the Lausanne History Museum in 2022 and was co-organized by the SAPA Foundation, we present the associated archive holdings.

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Prix de Lausanne inventory

The archive holdings of the Prix de Lausanne are very extensive with a volume of 11 linear metres and were handed over to the SAPA Foundation between 2019 and 2021 by the Fondation en faveur de l'Art Chorégraphique (FAC), which organizes the competition. The collection includes organizational documents, correspondence, advertising material, press articles and analogue photographs of the participants and behind-the-scenes events from 1973 to 2006. The indexing of this collection is still in progress, but the following sub-collections can already be identified: the seasons (1983 to 2006), the correspondence, the partners, the decision-making bodies and the photographs.

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Stock Philippe et Elvire Braunschweig

Philippe and Elvire Braunschweig's collection is even more extensive at 31 linear meters. It was transferred in two stages: first to the Swiss Dance Archives in 1998 and later to the Swiss Dance Collection, the successor institution, in 2013. Both institutions are the predecessors of the SAPA Foundation, which was established in 2017. The first donation was made by Philippe Braunschweig himself, the second by his son Georges Braunschweig. The cataloging of this collection is also still in progress, but individual parts relating to the Prix de Lausanne have already been identified. Particularly noteworthy are the Fondation en faveur de l'Art Chorégraphique (FAC) and Prix de Laus anne fonds from the period in which Philippe and Elvire Braunschweig managed these institutions (1973-1996).

Also worth mentioning are smaller document collections such as the archives of Dieter Ammann or the Compagnie Linga, which contain a series of video recordings of choreographies created especially for the competition.

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The SAPA Foundation welcomes interest in these holdings and is available for information and inspection by appointment.