The ZKB Prizes

Since their launch in 2001, the ZKB Prizes have contributed to the profile of the festival programme. The label «nominated for the ZKB Patronage Prize» has succeeded in denoting exciting and unique up-and-coming talents. Together with the Zürcher Kantonalbank, we are looking forward to continue our long-term commitment this year.

WINNERS ZKB PRICES 2023

At the end of the festival on Saturday 2.9. the ZKB Prizes were awarded, with which the Zürcher Kantonalbank, as the main partner, has been honouring artists who have performed at the festival for over twenty years. Nadia Beugré receives the ZKB Patronage Prize for «L’homme rare». The jury (Antje Schupp, Kristina Savickienė, Miriam Ibrahim, Rosette Nteyafas and Shinu Kim) praised how the choreographer, together with the ensemble of performers, «has created a unique performance language that is neither homogenising nor exoticising, but assembles different cultural legacies and languages to coexist side by side and yet contributes to one shared whole. … The simultaneity of different meanings and a diversity of expression help to dissolve lines of separation and offer an imagination of true connection.»

Khun Sreynoch & Ny Lai reiceve the ZKB Acknowledgment Prize for their short piece «Sronoh & Snow White». According to the jury, «the artists have accomplished a unique artistic expression for the unspeakable. The multi-faceted use of simple props – fine chalk powder and a red lipstick – links the two performance parts like a leap in time, enveloping the dead and the living in a dance with each other. This is how the work provides a space for sisterhood and solidarity across generations, where contemporaries and spirits of ancestors meet, in Cambodia and beyond.»

The audience award of CHF 10,000 went to the Palestinian artist Basel Zaraa for «Dear Laila», an interactive installation about war, displacement and exile, about everyday life and resistance.

We warmly congratulate all award winners!

See here for the statements of the jury.

The ZKB Audience Prize Fr. 10,000.-

Since 2016, spectators at the Zürcher Theater Spektakel have been able to cast their vote for the ZKB Audience Prize. At the entrance to the nominees’ productions, they are handed out a ballot to rate the show. The prize is awarded to the production with the best audience ratings.

In this win-win situation, not only artists, but also the audience can benefit. All voters automatically enter a raffle for one of the following prizes:

  • 1st prize: VIP package for the ZKB award ceremony 2024
  • 2nd prize: 2 performance vochers for the Zürcher Theater Spektakel 2024
  • 3rd prize: Food voucher worth 100 Swiss Francs for the Zürcher Theater Spektakel

ZKB Patronage Prize Fr. 30,000.-

The ZKB Patronage Prize is awarded to a company or an artist working in theatre, dance or performance art. The aim of this prize is to support the chosen recipient in their future projects. It is awarded to a performance whose premiere has taken place within the past three years and represents independent theatre in a distinctive way. The nominees are chosen by the festival board. Precedence is given to artists who have yet to receive a level of public recognition commensurate with their achievements. Former prize-winners are excluded from nomination.

Nominees 2023

ZKB Acknowledgment Prize Fr. 5000.-

The ZKB Acknowledgement Prize allows for additional recognition and support of a nominee. It is awarded to a company or artist for extraordinary achievement in such areas as choreography, dramaturgy, audience participation or acting. All productions shown in «Short Pieces» are nominated for the ZKB Acknowledgment Prize, unless they have previously been nominated.

Nominees 2023

International Jury

An independent jury of five experts decides on awarding the ZKB Prizes. The jury panel is chosen by the programme board and is presided by one of its members, who is not entitled to vote. The jury’s decisions, but not their consultations, are made public. The 2023 jury was composed as follows:

ANTJE SCHUPP

Antje Schupp is a director, performer, author and teacher of conceptual art. She works across disciplines in theatre, music theatre, performance and dance.

KRISTINA SAVICKIENĖ

Kristina Savickienė is a theatre producer and documentary theatre maker. She is the artistic director of the international theatre festival Sirenos as well as head of the artistic department of the Lithuanian National Drama Theater in Vilnius.

MIRIAM IBRAHIM

Miriam Ibrahim is an independent theatre maker, with a special focus on the exploration of new spaces and healthier structures in theatre. She is a member of the dramaturgy department at Schauspielhaus Zurich.

ROSETTE NTEYAFAS

Rosette Nteyafas is a festival manager, producer and poet. She is the line producer of Tebere Arts Foundation and Kampala International Theatre Festival.

SHINU KIM

Shinu Kim is a performing arts researcher, curator and producer. She has worked for Ob/Scene Festival and Festival Bo:m in Seoul as well as international art and performance programmes at MMCA, Korea.

Former Prize Winners

2022

Patronage Prize: Ali Chahrour – «The Love Behind My Eyes»
Acknowledgement Prize: Martha Luisa Hernández Cadenas – «No soy unicorno»
Audience Prize: SMALL CITIZENS – «The Children of Amazi (Kinder des Wassers)»

2021

Patronage Prize: Mallika Taneja – «Allegedly»
Acknowledgement Prize: Edna Jaime – «O Bom Combate (The Good Fight)» 
Audience Prize: Tschuku Tschuku – «Zilin» & Marina Otero Argentinien – «FUCK ME»

2020

Due to the corona pandemic and the ensuing conditions for the festival, the criteria for nomination and awarding prizes could not be applied. Accordingly, Zürcher Kantonalbank and the festival direction have decided not to award any ZKB Prizes in 2020.

2019

Patronage Prize: Samara Hersch & Lara Thoms – «We All Know What's Happening»
Acknowledgement Prize: Ira Melkonyan & The Rubberbodies Collective «Upstairs Geology 50/50»
Audience Prize: Samara Hersch & Lara Thoms – «We All Know What's Happening»

2018

Patronage Prize: Silke Huysman & Hannes Dereere – «Mining Stories»
Acknowledgement Prize: Youness Atbane & Youness Aboulakoul – «The Architects»
Audience Prize: Casus Circus – «Driftwood»

2017

Patronage Prize: Wojtek Ziemilski & Nowy Teatr – «Jeden gest (One Gesture)»
Acknowledgement Prize: Fatoumata Bagayoko – «Fatou t'as tout fait»
Audience Prize: Lukas Avendaño – «No soy persona. Soy mariposa»

 

For a complete list of the prize winners since 1996 please check here