Great achievement! Interview with Japanese finalists of Lausanne International Ballet Competition 2022

50th Lausanne International Ballet Competition 2022
Sachiya Takada was selected as a finalist.
Takada, who was born in Yokohama, started taking ballet at the age of 4 at her mother's ballet studio.

Speaking of the Lausanne International Ballet Competition, it is a world-famous competition that is a hot topic in Japan every year and can be said to be a gateway to success for young ballet dancers.
An initial selection will be conducted on paper and video, and the shortlisted candidates will travel to Switzerland as semi-finalists to participate in multiple on-site examinations. Dancers who pass this semi-final stage will advance to the main competition as finalists, aiming to win a prize. The competition is held for a long time, approximately one week, and requires not only physical strength but also high concentration and mental fortitude.
This year, there are 81 semi-finalists, and only 20 will become finalists. This is a very large and historic competition where many young dancers compete every year with the aim of winning a prize.

This time, we will feature Japanese dancer Sachiya Takada, who was selected as a finalist at the 50th Lausanne International Ballet Competition 2022.

<Career>
At the age of 4, she began taking ballet at a studio sponsored by her mother. Starting with winning first place in a small ballet competition she entered for the first time in the third grade of elementary school, she went on to win awards in numerous competitions. In 2019, she placed 2nd in the Japanese preliminary round of an international competition called YAGP (Youth America Grand Prix), and won the right to the finals in New York and a scholarship to her first choice ballet school, but both were canceled due to the coronavirus outbreak.
In place of the canceled New York finals, the selection was held via video, and she was awarded a full scholarship from the Basel Theater Ballet School (Switzerland), where she is currently studying abroad, and was able to successfully study abroad despite the coronavirus pandemic.

Mr. Takada:
Although there were various difficulties due to the coronavirus pandemic, I believe that by changing to the current school, I was able to participate in Lausanne (International Ballet Competition). I was very lucky.

-Mr. Takada is currently studying abroad in Switzerland. Please tell me about your daily life
They live in the school's boys' house and cook their own meals every day. Every day, I go to school by tram, start lessons at 8 a.m., go to the academic building in the afternoon, take classroom lessons, buy food, and go home.

-How did you start ballet?
My sister took lessons first at my mother's ballet studio, so I always saw her lessons.
My mother told me that she thought it would be promising if I had her do ballet foot prints in the living room at home, so I started seriously when I was 4 years old.

-What does ballet mean to you, Takada?
This is the main focus of my life and will become my future profession.
I want to firmly express that ``ballet is an art.''

- Thoughts on the Lausanne International Ballet Competition
I participated with the aim of being scouted by a ballet company where I could potentially find employment.
Unfortunately it didn't happen. As a result, it was very difficult for a while, but now it has become even more motivating and I want to connect it to the future.

Scenes from participating in the Lausanne International Ballet Competition

-How I felt when I was selected as a finalist
I didn't feel extravagant, but I was secretly confident that I could become a finalist, so I did it! That's what I felt.

Scenes from participating in the Lausanne International Ballet Competition 2022

-Future outlook
There is only one year left until I graduate from school, and at the same time I will start job hunting.
My goal is to join a company somewhere in Europe and America.
I want to work hard every day so that I have no regrets.

thank you very much!
He was confident that he could become a finalist. Yukiya Takada is a young dancer full of confidence and hope, and his skills are undoubtedly cultivated through rigorous daily lessons.
Even though I was unable to attend my desired school abroad due to the coronavirus pandemic, I feel like it was fate that led me to become the person I am today. He wants to express that "ballet is art".
I look forward to seeing you in the future!