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Five Australians and a New Zealander are among the 15 young dancers to have been selected for the final of the Margot Fonteyn International Ballet Competition (formerly the Genee).
This year’s iteration of the Royal Academy of Dance’s flagship event took place online. The format resulted in a record 97 applicants, representing 16 countries.
The Australian finalists are:
Mia Atkinson (NSW), Tanya Pearson Academy (trained by Catherine Edwards);
Amber Mitchell-Chevalier (Vic), National Ballet Theater School (trained by Susan Sargison);
Amelia Soh (NSW), Mosman Dance Academy (formed by Jasmin Bobyk, Paris Bobyk);
Christian Carlo-Stella (NSW), Alegria Ballet Studio and English National Ballet School (trained by Hilary Kaplan and Archibald McKenzie); and
Milei Lee, English National Ballet School (formed by Liane McRae).
The New Zealand candidate is Alice McArthur, formed by the Auckland Dance Academy.
They will compete alongside:
Sebastien Aguiñaga (Mexico); Luke Blair (UK); Olivia Chang Clarke (UK); Tayla De Bie (South Africa); Poppy Frankel (United Kingdom); Hannah martin (UK); Paige McElligott (South Africa); Lize mentz (South Africa) and Edward truelove (UK).
The jury was made up of RAD President Dame Darcey Bussell, Scottish Ballet Artistic Director and CEO Christopher Hampson, and former Birmingham Royal Ballet Artistic Director Sir David Bintley.
The 15 finalists will now learn a solo commissioned by Ashley Page, former artistic director of the Scottish Ballet, which they will perform with a classical solo in the final on Thursday 9 September.
RAD has worked hard to ensure that the competition provides an inspiring and rewarding experience for its applicants, despite the restrictions of the pandemic. At the start of the competition, 114 dancers from 18 countries received online coaching from leading professionals including former Royal Ballet directors Ed Watson and Leanne Benjamin, Miguel Altunaga of the Rambert Dance Company and Amber Scott , principal dancer of the Australian Ballet. All finalist solos will be sent to artistic directors of top companies around the world, providing a potentially crucial stepping stone in their career path.
The final will be available to watch online. Hosted by President Dame Darcey Bussell and Artistic Director Gerard Charles, it will be held on Thursday, September 9 at 7:30 p.m. BST, with ticket holders being able to watch the event on demand until September 19. To learn more and to book tickets, visit www.royalacademofdance.org/fonteyn2021
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