2025 NSW Ballet Awards | Houston Ballet Academy Scholarship | Marilyn Jones OBE Artistry Award

Published in Print May 2025 order now!
view photo gallery | AICD NSW Ballet Awards 11-12 Years
view photo gallery | AICD NSW Ballet Awards 13-14 Years
view photo gallery | Houston Ballet Scholarship

Presented by AICD | 14 April 2025 | The McDonald College, NSW

Words and images by Danielle Brown

The 2025 NSW Ballet Awards, hosted by the Australian Institute of Classical Dance (AICD) and held at The McDonald College in Sydney, once again celebrated the depth of emerging classical ballet talent across the state. With the esteemed Damien Welch adjudicating, the event welcomed a new generation of dancers to the stage—highlighting their technique, musicality, and evolving sense of artistry across three age categories: 11–12 Years, 13–14 Years, and 15–18 Years.

The 15–18 Years division featured the prestigious and highly sought-after AICD Houston Ballet Academy Scholarship 2025. This major prize includes an all-expenses-paid trip to the United States to attend the Houston Ballet Academy’s Summer Intensive—an extraordinary opportunity unmatched by any other youth ballet competition in Australia.

11–12 Years Division
Taking out the top prize in the 11–12 Years category was Suzanne Liu of Redlands Dance Academy, who captivated the adjudicator and audience with a performance that demonstrated marked growth in both confidence and expression.

“Last year, I wasn’t too confident with my new solo, and I didn’t receive anything,” Suzanne reflected after her win. “But I performed my solo again this year, and I felt really confident on stage. I felt like I was actually in the dance. It was really joyful—I felt free. I didn’t mind people watching me… I just forgot about everything else.”

Her candid and heartfelt words perfectly echoed the very qualities adjudicator Damien Welch was seeking. With nearly two decades of international ballet experience—including a decade as a Principal Artist with The Australian Ballet—Welch brought a discerning and compassionate eye to the judging process.

When announcing the results, he shared his impressions with the audience:

“What I’m looking for isn’t just the best technique or the nicest tutu—it’s how you interpret the music. How your arms, your head, your face respond. How you feel the music. In this age group, that’s so important. Technique you can work on—artistry is what really develops.”

Results
1st Place: Suzanne Liu – Redlands Dance Academy formerly Sonja Dene Dance Studio

2nd Place: Imogen Stephens – The McDonald College
3rd Place: Georgia Feledy – Dance North Academy

Highly Commended: Audrey Heading (The Studio International), Sia Rupil (Tanya Pearson Academy), Abigail Kakala (The McDonald College)

Prizes

1st Place: $900 cash ($400 + $500 BLOCH voucher) + Dancetrain subscription

2nd Place: $500 cash ($200 + $300 BLOCH voucher) + Dancetrain subscription

3rd Place: $300 cash ($100 + $200 BLOCH voucher) + Dancetrain subscription

13–14 Years Division
The 13–14 Years category delivered standout performances that demonstrated both developing technique and blossoming artistry. Damien Welch spoke to the calibre and spirit of the performers:

“You’ve all raised the standard. Everyone used their spatial awareness and absolutely nailed it.

There are a few layers to performance—technique, artistry, and musicality. Sometimes those things come together beautifully. Other times, someone may have amazing artistry but might not yet have the technique to fully support it. But it doesn’t matter if someone started dancing ten years ago, or twelve months ago—you can see the joy. When someone comes out and puts a smile on your face, that’s the magic of it.

My one bit of advice? Breathe. When something doesn’t go quite right, or you get tense—just breathe. Feel the ground. Breathing helps your plié, and that’s kind of the key.”

Results

1st Place: Holly Robinson – Dance North Academy

2nd Place: Anneke Soulis – The McDonald College

3rd Place: Lewis Nicholson – Nova City Ballet (formerly NCOD)

Highly Commended: Anna Stephensen (Dance North Academy), Wahta Handy (National College of Dance), Ava Meng (Raising The Barre Academy), Milania Franklin (The Dance Spot)

Prizes

1st Place: $1,100 ($500 cash + $600 BLOCH voucher) + Dancetrain subscription

2nd Place: $700 ($300 cash + $400 BLOCH voucher) + Dancetrain subscription

3rd Place: $500 ($200 cash + $300 BLOCH voucher) + Dancetrain subscription


Welch praised each of the top performers in turn:

“In third place, with a very strong performance and some lovely technique, Lewis Nicholson. That’s a hard solo—I can attest to it.”

“In second place, Anneke Soulis. I think we can all agree—Anneke, you looked like a princess out there. There was a regal quality to your performance. You absolutely nailed it—with technique, musicality, and an incredible stage presence.”

“And in first place, Holly Robinson—a remarkably strong dancer with incredible talent.”

Holly shared her joy: “It felt so amazing. I was so happy to be on stage, dancing for a crowd. I just feel so happy and privileged to be able to perform this amazing solo.”

On returning to AICD: “I like how well-run it is and how amazing all the adjudicators are—and the incredible feedback we get.”

15–18 Years Division
The AICD Houston Ballet Academy Scholarship 2025 brought together a fiercely competitive field. Welch commented:

“At this level, I’m really looking for that blend of technique and artistry. You want to see the technique coming together, because it’s the strength of the technique that allows you to relax and really embody the character—even if it’s only for two and a half minutes on stage in this intense setting.

We know it’s a difficult setting—with the audience so close and those bright lights in your face. Sometimes you can’t even tell where the edge of the stage is. I’ve seen principal ballerinas catch the edge and fall flat on their face. It happens. What matters is getting back up. You reset. You take a deep breath and you go again.”

Results

1st Place: Isla Clark – Dance North Academy

2nd Place: Madeleine Konstantakos – Dance North Academy (formerly The McDonald College)

3rd Place: Ryan Keo – National College of Dance

Highly Commended: Sofia Hamilton (Dance North Academy), Isla Keenan (Nova City Ballet, formerly National College of Dance), Sophie Reid (Classical Coaching with Claire Campbell-Mahon)

Prizes


1st Place: AICD Houston Ballet Academy Scholarship 2025 – Return airfares to Houston, Texas, USA for the HBA Summer Intensive 2025. Full tuition, accommodation, and meals (breakfast and dinner) included, plus a dancetrain magazine subscription. Total value approx. $8,000 + $500 cash. Airfare is partially sponsored by Global Dance Tours.

2nd Place: $800 cash sponsored by BLOCH + dancetrain subscription

3rd Place: $400 cash + dancetrain subscription


Welch acknowledged each top performer:

“Another round of applause—Sofia Hamilton gave a beautiful performance. And Sophie Reid, a coordinated ballerina through and through.

In third place, Ryan Keo, showing us that pirouettes are absolutely no problem—and he’s well on his way to mastering the rest of his technique.

Second place went to Madeleine Konstantakos, who literally bounced back. And in first place—who also managed the props onstage!—Isla Clark.”

Isla shared: “America’s definitely a dream. To be given the opportunity to perform today, and to have the chance to win this amazing scholarship—it’s just so special. Especially given how many talented dancers were in this section. I just can’t stop smiling.”

Marilyn Jones Artistry Award
The inaugural Marilyn Jones Artistry Award, sponsored by BLOCH, was introduced to honour exceptional expression and performance. Welch presented the award to Madeleine Konstantakos:

“It was a beautiful performance. You had the technique, and you let yourself go on top of that—you performed. It could have gone to quite a few people today, but you were definitely the one.”

Madeleine responded: “It really feels amazing to be noticed for something I’ve really worked on—and that also comes naturally to me. I’m so happy to have been recognised for this. It’s such a lovely way to start the comp season. This is such a well-thought-out competition. It’s really well organised—I love how we start with the class, and then everyone performs their variation. It’s so well prepared.”

Acknowledging the Heart Behind the Scenes
Spending the day at the AICD, Houston Ballet Scholarships, and New South Wales Ballet Awards is so amazing. To be able to capture these dancers doing what they do at this age—celebrating everything they’ve achieved to get to this moment in time—is my favourite thing to do. And then on top of that, at the end, when you see dance teachers approach students who have recently left their studio to pursue training at another institution, congratulating them is just superb.
In an era where dancers seem to be moving more frequently in search of their ideal studio, relationships can be difficult to maintain. It’s up to our professionals—our leaders—like the ones I saw at the AICD Awards, who take the time to congratulate their former students, to lead the way. They demonstrate how these relationships can be navigated professionally, with courtesy and kindness.

Welch concluded the day with thanks to the team:

“To all the volunteers—thank you. This is a not-for-profit organisation, and the effort you all put in makes everything worthwhile. It allows these students to come here and do what they love. Congratulations to everyone involved.”

With excellence on stage and dedication behind the scenes, the 2025 NSW Ballet Awards reaffirmed the Australian Institute of Classical Dance’s ongoing commitment to nurturing the future of ballet—through opportunity, recognition, and heart.