UK’s young dancers on the path of securing the future of British Ballet at Final of the Fonteyn Nureyev Young Dancers Competition

Sunday 13 April saw the culmination of the Fonteyn Nureyev Young Dancers Competition at the Bloomsbury Theatre, London. 20 young dancers took to the stage, each giving a unique performance, infused with individual talent and charisma.

The judging panel, chaired by Dame Antoinette Sibley DBE, President of the Royal Academy of Dance, which included Sir John Tooley, Chairman of the Rudolf Nureyev Foundation and Wayne Sleep OBE, Vice President of the Royal Academy of Dance, had the difficult task of selecting two winners, one from each level; the titles and £1500 prize money were received, for Level 1 by Sophie Lewis, 11 yrs old from Guildford and for Level 2 by Matthew Koon, 14 yrs old (13 at the time of application) from Salford. Charlotte Evans also collected a scholarship offer for a week’s free tuition at The Wells Summer School.

Admired by a live audience of family, friends and dance enthusiasts, all candidates danced to their full potential, impressing dance professionals in the audience including Marion Tait (Birmingham Royal Ballet) and Francesca Filpi (Royal Ballet).

The Judges also awarded a “Runner up IDS Scholarship” at each level to Natasha Agarwal, Level 1 from St. Helens and Charlotte Evans, Level 2 from Chobham. They were each awarded £250 towards their dance training, donated by International Dance Supplies, key sponsors of the 2008 competition. A commendation of £150, donated by Desmond Kelly (Birmingham Royal Ballet) and David Nixon (Northern Ballet Theatre) after judging the Birmingham and Manchester heats respectively, was also awarded to Level 1 candidate Hannah Gunningham from Bristol and Level 2 candidate Dominique Halsall from St. Helens.

Level 2 winner Matthew Koon, Judge Wayne Sleep OBE and Level 1 winner Sophie Lewi, Photo: Brian Slater

All participants were given the opportunity to be coached, as a group and on a one-to-one basis over a weekend of intensive training by choreographer Gillian Lynne CBE (Cats, Phantom of the Opera, A Simple Man) who created the magical variations that the candidates performed to, set on extracts from John Williams’ score for the Harry Potter films.

Gillian also created a “unison dance” on them, exclusively for the Final night’s performance; she said of this year’s “unison dance” coaching,

"In the end, we only had three and a half hours to pull this piece together. It took a lot of hard work and perseverance, I pushed them to their limits, I wanted them to shine and perform their best. Therefore I've had to be an ogre and push and coach with discipline, but always with a lot of love. You can't have discipline without love and you can't get anywhere in dance without excessive discipline."

Having attracted more than 300 young dancers from all over the UK this year, the competition has, from its onset, been providing them with the opportunity to come together and experience the thrill of a live performance.

The Fonteyn Nureyev Young Dancers Competition is held biennially, aiming to increase the popularity of ballet among young people, and to identify, encourage and nurture talent for the long-term future of British ballet. This year, the competition was made possible by the funding and support of the Rudolf Nureyev Foundation, the Rudolf Nureyev Dance Foundation, International Dance Supplies and additional generous contributions from Fondation Bay and the Musical Opera and Ballet Trust.