Tait Memorial Trust Launches New Prize for Royal Ballet School Graduates
The Tait Memorial Trust has today announced an exciting new initiative for emerging ballet talent from Australia and New Zealand. The Tait Bonynge Prize is a newly established annual award that will grant £5,000 each to two outstanding Australian or New Zealand dancers graduating from The Royal Ballet School.
One prize will be awarded to a graduate selected for The Royal Ballet’s Aud Jebsen Young Dancers Programme, and another to a graduate joining BRB2, Birmingham Royal Ballet’s junior company.
Named in honour of celebrated Australian conductor and long-time Tait Patron Richard Bonynge AC CBE, the prize underscores the Trust’s mission to support young Australasian artists training and working in the UK. It also reflects Bonynge’s lifelong commitment to artistic excellence and mentorship.
“The Tait Bonynge Prize represents an exciting new chapter in our mission to support young artists from Australia and New Zealand,” said Isla Baring OAM, Chairman of the Tait Memorial Trust. “By linking this initiative with The Royal Ballet and Birmingham Royal Ballet, we are investing in the future of ballet and celebrating the shared cultural heritage of our nations.”
“If I can help to make life easier for a few young dancers of today, it gives me the greatest pleasure,” added Richard Bonynge AC CBE.
The initiative is spearheaded by Royal Ballet School alumna and Tait Patron Leanne Benjamin AM OBE, a former Principal Dancer of The Royal Ballet, alongside a distinguished selection panel including Kevin O’Hare CBE, Director of The Royal Ballet, and Carlos Acosta CBE, Director of Birmingham Royal Ballet.
The prize is designed to support the transition from school to professional company life, which can be a particularly demanding period in a dancer’s career. Both the Aud Jebsen Young Dancers Programme and BRB2 offer high-level performance experience within leading companies, mentorship, and training.
“This prize represents a wonderful opportunity for young dancers, helping them transition successfully into professional careers with invaluable support and mentorship,” said Leanne Benjamin.
“The Tait Memorial Trust has already done so much to enrich the future of performing artists from Australia and New Zealand,” said Kevin O’Hare. “Now this new initiative promises even more crucial support.”
“The Tait Bonynge Prize is a brilliant new development,” added Carlos Acosta. “It will help exceptional young ballet students make the crucial transition to life as professional dancers through the tremendous opportunities offered by our BRB2 initiative.”
The prize will be awarded annually, contingent on eligible Australian or New Zealand dancers being accepted into either company’s programme in that year. The first recipients will be announced in the coming weeks.
📩 Media enquiries:
Bridget Clark – pressmedia@royalballetschool.org.uk
James Hancock – james@taitmemorialtrust.org
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