Frankfurt Ballet Director Scoops German Culture Council Award

William Forsythe, director and choreographer of the renowned Frankfurt Ballet, is set to receive the German Culture Council's prestigious "Kulturgroschen 2003" for outstanding services to the arts in Berlin on Wednesday. The umbrella organization of German cultural associations said that Forsythe stood for innovation in dance. Even though Forsythe recently also picked up the German Dance Prize 2004, the recognition will have no effect on the controversial decision to dissolve the internationally fêted Frankfurt Ballet announced in late November. Frankfurt has been forced to push through spending cuts that have hit the arts particularly hard. The company which boasts many of the best dancers in the world and has been described by the Neue Zürcher Zeitung as "one of Germany's most successful cultural exports" will be performing its swan song in June 2004.