The Third International Serge Diaghilev Competition of Choreography Art is over. All awards and distinctions are presented. All is left are emotions and memories of communing with the international art of choreography. Grand Prix laureate and the winner of Amber Faun statue is Hofesh Shetcher from Great Britain. The 1st laureate is Victor Kabaniaev from USA and the 2nd laureate is Satoshi Kudo, representing Sweden.

For the first time in the history of Polish ballet, the Polish Serge Diaghilev Memorial Medal for outstanding contribution to international choreography was granted. The Medal Chapter has granted this medal to the most remarkable lady of the Gdansk Ballet Stage, who sadly passed away in September this year, choreographer Janina Jarzynowna-Sobczak. The medal was given to the family.

The International Foundation "Diaghilev's House", established in Russia under the auspices of UNESCO, has honored the creator, organizer and the Director of the Competition Alexandr Azarkevitch with the Silver Serge Diaghilev Medal. This award was granted for a significant contribution and achievements in choreography art promotion, for the renovation of the Serge Diaghilev's inheritance, who was a great activist and reformer of the world culture and ballet, and also for organization of the International Serge Diaghilev Competition of Choreography Art. Alexandr Azarkevitch became the 21st person in the world who was presented with this distinction. Among others the laureates of this medal are Maurice Bejart, the founder of "Ballet XX"; Bernadette Chirac, the wife of President of France, who has supported the development of dance art; Pierre Cardin, a world famous fashion designer and the companies: Grand Opera in Paris, Les Ballet de Monte-Carlo and The Mariinsky Theatre in Petersburg.

An extraordinary and a very special highlight of this year Festival edition was the performance of the modern dance theatre Moving Arts Dance Company from USA, directed by Anandha Ray and Scott Belding.

See what was happening:
• October 8^th, 2004
• October 9^th, 2004

The arrangements for the 4th edition of the Competition which will be held in October 2005 are already in progress.

The International Serge Diaghilev Competition of Choreography Art is a forum of artists dealing with professional choreography. The Competition aims to discover and promote the most talented of them. The choreographers' work will be thoroughly evaluated by a competent Jury. This is also a splendid environment for opinions exchange, to join efforts in search and definition of new directions in contemporary ballet theatre.
During the two nights in October fans of contemporary ballet and the audience will meet with diversity of professionally performed choreographic miniatures on the stage of Danuta Baduszkowa Music Theatre in Gdynia. The Competition is the only event of this kind in Poland, where creative work of choreographers from different countries in the world is being evaluated and awarded. The laureate of the competition will be awarded Grand Prix - the statuette of The Amber Faun, created in Jan Sygitowicz gallery AmberiA in Gdansk along with a financial award. The Amber Faun symbolizes the figure of Faun from L'apres-midi d'un Faune ballet with the music of Claude Debussy and the choreography of the world famous artist of the 20th century Vaslav Nijinsky.

The International Serge Diaghilev Competition of Choreography Art has been permanently recorded into the Municipal Event Calendar of Gdynia and is organised in collaboration with the Gdynia City Office. Being organised and conducted at high, world class artistic level the Competition has already gained significant recognition not only in Europe, but also worldwide. This year there will be contestants from Japan, Australia, and the United States of America.

The creator and Director of the Competition is Alexandr Azarkevitch - dancer, educator, choreographer and ballet historian, laureate of Polish and international festivals and competitions, the author of many pieces of choreography, presented on stages in Poland and abroad. He is the Founder and President of The Serge Diaghilev Association for the Promotion of Choreography Art; the Artistic Director of The Pomeranian Modern Dance Workshops in Gdansk, an organiser of periodic Modern Ballet Nights in Gdansk, the Artistic Director of the Vivid Motion Theatre in Tricity; a scholar of PRO HELVETIA Foundation in Switzerland; a candidate for doctor's degree at the Institute of Fine Arts of Polish Academy of Sciences (PAN) in Warsaw.