Julio
Bocca
Jury member of Benois de la Danse
Benois de la Danse laureate
Head of Julio Bocca Foundation
Born in March 1967 in Buenos Aires, Argentina. He began his studies at the age of four under the tutelage of his mother Nancy Bocca. Upon graduation from the Institute Superior of Art at the Theatre Colon he joined the company and was promoted to the soloist.
In 1983 he was invited to the company of the Municipal Theatre of Rio de Janeiro as a principal dancer and he also performed in Caracas.
In 1984 he took part in the International Ballet Competition in Osaka (Japan). In 1985 he won the First Prize and the Gold Medal at the International ballet Competition in Moscow. This victory attracts the attention of the world ballet community to him. Mikhail Barishnikov, who was the artistic director of the American Ballet Theatre in those days, invites the eighteen-year-old dancer to join the company as a soloist. Soon due to the disagreements with Barishnikov, he leaves the company and begins the career of the guest artist at such theatres as the Royal Ballet of London, Hamburg Ballet and Ballet La Scala. He participates in various European ballet festivals. Julio Bocca returns for one season to the ABT but again leaves it not f nding the compromises with the artistic director. He comes back to the ABT as Danseuse Etoile only after the changing of the directorate.
His international career meets overwhelming success. His many prizes and nominations include: Maria Ruanova “Primus Inter Pares” (1986); “Dancer of the Year” New York Times (1987); Caballero de la Orden San Martín de Tours (1987); “Gino Tani Awards to the Arts”; Personality of the Year (1990) granted in France together with other celebrities such as Mother Teresa; Barocco sponsored by RAI; Martin Fierro for Best Performance in Television (1991); Dance Magazine (1992); King David Award from the Argentine House of Jerusalem (1996), Celebrity of the Year Gold Prize Clarin Newspaper (2006); and Hispanic American Max Award for the Performing Arts (2007) granted by SGAE in Bilbao, Spain. In 1992 he becomes the f rst laureate of BENOIS DE LA DANSE Prize (Bolshoi Theatre).
Julio Bocca is the Cultural Ambassador for the Mercosur and is a member of the International Dance Council, CID Paris — UNESCO. In 1990 he founds his own company “Ballet Argentino”. In 1997 in Borches Cultural Center Julio BOCCA inaugurates his own studio to train young Argentinean ballet dancers. Mr. Bocca will retire on December 22, 2007.
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