What is The Place Prize?
The UK's foremost choreographic competition, investing £100,000 in new commissions and awarding £25,000 to the overall winner.

What is the point of The Place Prize?
The Place Prize puts contemporary British dance in the limelight, celebrating and illuminating it for audiences both familiar and new.

Why is it necessary now?
Dance activity in the UK has reached a critical mass. There are 200 showcase performances each year from Dundee to Cardiff, the majority of which are in London. 650 dance works are made in Britain every year, a vast quantity virtually invisible to the public. The Place Prize will provide a focus for this creativity, and ensure the best get the recognition they truly deserve.

Is a competition demeaning to dance as an art form?
All dance artists are in competition for performance dates, audiences, resources and funding. These days, most funding decisions are made by arts council officers following application from artists who write about what they are likely to do. A competition between actual works on a stage, assessed by the public and by distinguished judges, is a vital complement.

How is The Place Prize different from other arts prizes?
It's for dance, the most significant choreographic competition in the UK. This is the first. And unusually it is a competition amongst specially commissioned works, which the public can go and see.

How is it different from other dance awards?
Other dance awards are not cash prizes but production or research grants, like the Bonnie Bird Awards. Or dance is included in annual newspaper or critics' awards, which carry no cash benefits.

Is The Place selling out to commercial sponsorship?
No. The idea for The Place Prize is ours, and our sponsors will have no input into the selection of the commissioned works nor the prize winners. The sponsorship Bloomberg are giving to support The Place Prize is new money for dance. We benefit from our association with Bloomberg and the excellent activities it supports in other art forms. See www.bloomberg.com

Will The Place Prize develop wider interest in dance?
Competitions can do that, offering a way-in to a new art form for some audiences, and provoking debate amongst others. We will try to ensure the maximum possible coverage in the media for the competition and the artists involved.

Whose idea is it?
John Ashford, The Place Theatre Director, is the architect of The Place Prize, following his attendance as a judge in comparable competitions in Denmark, Holland, Israel, Mexico and Spain.

Why does Bloomberg sponsor a choreographic competition?
Bloomberg is passionate about the arts. They support many cultural projects around the world, running a programme of exhibitions, performances, talks and other events. These are open to employees and clients alike.

Are there any other choreographic competitions of this kind?
No, uniquely The Place Prize is a competition amongst specially commissioned works. Examples of choreographic competitions in other countries include:

Denmark  www.dansescenen.dk

Spain  www.masdanza.com

Germany  www.treffpunkt-rotebuehlplatz.de

Finland www.kuopiodancefestival.fi

Mexico  www.danza.com.mx/premio