Floor Eimers wins Alexandra Radiusprijs
Dutch ballerina Floor Eimers, soloist with Het Nationale Ballet, wins the Alexandra Radiusprijs 2021. The judges describe Eimers as an “extremely gifted dancer of immense physical strength, whose technical aptitude and marked stage presence make her stand out.” She is considered “a true ambassador for Dutch dance (…) on the stage as well as off.”
The judges praise Eimers’ performances in several of the technically very challenging variations from Marius Petipa’s Paquita and in William Forsythe’s Pas/Parts, and her impressive performances in Hans van Manen’s iconic duets Sarcasmen and Déjà vu, adding a new dimension to the latter dancing with Edo Wijnen.
Alexandra Radius herself presented the award to Eimers on Thursday, 14 October during the premiere of the Dutch National Ballet’s Mata Hari at the Nationale Opera & Ballet in Amsterdam. Eimers is the 32nd recipient of the award.
The Alexandra Radiusprijs consists of € 3000 and a work of art from the legacy of fine artist and illustrator Humphrey Bennett.
Floor Eimers (Nijmegen) was trained at the Royal Conservatoire in The Hague. In 2012 she was hired by the Dutch National Ballet as a member of the Junior Company. In 2019 she made her debut dancing the double role of Odette/Odile in Swan Lake. From the 2019-2020 season, Eimers was promoted to the rank of soloist. The influential British magazine Dance Europe mentioned her both in 2020 and in 2021 in its annual Critic’s Choice, in the category ‘Outstanding performance by a female dancer’.
Eimers, who says she is “incredibly happy to receive this award and greatly honoured to become part of a line-up of fantastic dancers who have previously won the award” sits on the Committee of Recommendation of Stichting Kunst in Beweging, is a member of the board with Stichting Dansersfonds ’79, and she is one of the founder/directors of the Dans Talenten Fonds, which enables children and adolescents from underprivileged homes to study at the Dutch National Ballet Academy.
The judges of this year’s Alexandra Radiusprijs were: Alexandra Radius (former principal with the Dutch National Ballet), Caroline Sayo Iura (former principal with the Dutch National Ballet and ballet master for the Junior Company), Astrid van Leeuwen (dance journalist), Frederik Redelé (member of the ballet committee) and Stella Noach (Friend of the Dutch National Ballet).
photo Floor Eimers and Alexandra Radius: Michel Schnater