The Australian Ballet has announced that Artistic Director David Hallberg will join the Company on stage in a series of special guest appearances for their production of Kunstkamer. A landmark production for The Australian Ballet, Kunstkamer is one of the most ambitious contemporary dance productions ever undertaken by the Company.
Kunstkamer was originally developed for the pioneering dance company Nederlands Dans Theater (NDT) in celebration of its 60th anniversary, by some of the most notable choreographers working today: former NDT House Choreographers Sol León and Paul Lightfoot, and NDT Associate Choreographers Marco Goecke and Crystal Pite. This will be the first time the ballet has been performed outside of The Netherlands.
David Hallberg says that “…Kunstkamer will show audiences what else is possible in dance, seen through the most modern and compelling form of expression.”
David is scheduled to appear as a guest artist in the following performances in Sydney:
Friday 29 April 7.30pm, Saturday 30 April 7.30pm, Tuesday 3 May 7.30pm, Wednesday 4 May 7.30pm, Friday 6 May 7.30pm, Saturday 7 May 7.30pm, Monday 9 May 7.30pm, Wednesday 11 May 7.30pm, Friday 13 May 7.30pm, and Saturday 14 May 7.30pm.
Tickets for the final dress rehearsal of Kunstkamer on Thursday 28 April are still available! For more information and to book, click here.
The Australian Ballet and Telstra have announced the names of the five members of the company nominated for this year’s Telstra Ballet Dancer Awards.
Selected by The Ballet’s artistic team, dancers and previous winners, the 2022 nominees are: Thomas Gannon (Corps de Ballet), Adam Elmes (Corps de Ballet), Lilly Maskery (Corps de Ballet), Rina Nemoto (Soloist) and Lucien Xu (Coryphée.) The winners of the awards will be announced at the Sydney Opera House on Tuesday 5 April 2022, following the Sydney opening night of The Australian Ballet’s production of Anna Karenina.
The Telstra Ballet Dancer Awards, comprising two separate awards, have become a much sought-after prize, with ten former winners going on to become Principal Artists with TAB. The Telstra Rising Star Award, chosen by a panel of judges from The Ballet and Telstra, which has a cash prize of $25,000; while the Telstra People’s Choice Award, chosen by a public online vote, has a prize of $15,000.
To learn more about each nominee, and vote for your favourite in the Telstra People’s Choice Award, click here.
Evangeline Beal-Atwood was born and raised in Newcastle NSW and is one of four children.
She started dancing at the age of two at a small local school called Action Dancers. At the age of five,
Evangeline moved to The Marie Walton Mahon Dance Academy which is now The National College of Dance
in Lambton NSW. It was there that her love for the art form deepened.
At the age of 11, Evangeline was certain ballet was something more than just an afterschool hobby. At the
age of 14 she began training part time, which meant three full days of dancing and two days of academic
studies via correspondence. In that year, she achieved her Certificate III in Dance.
Evangeline’s schedule intensified the following year as her dreams and aspirations for ballet grew. At the age
of 15 Evangeline transitioned into a full time program, dancing six days per week, and successfully attained
her Certificate IV in Dance.
Evangeline’s passion for dance motivated her, at the age of 16, to leave her family and fly to Europe to take
up an offer to train at a vocational ballet school in Germany. This experience–both daunting and exciting–
turned out to be not quite what she’d expected, so Evangeline flew to London to audition for the English
National Ballet School. She successfully gained a place in the full time student program. After just six weeks, a
complication with her visa meant that she had to temporarily leave the UK. Evangeline flew home to her
family in Australia. As the COVID-19 situation worsened in the UK, Evangeline and her family made the
decision to pursue training closer to home and gladly accepted a position at The Australian Ballet School.
Evangeline commend training at The Australian Ballet School at Level 7 in 2021.
Evangeline said “Finding a ballet school which offered me world class training whilst also supporting my
mental and physical health wasn’t as easy as I had hoped. However, within the first few weeks of being at The
Australian Ballet School I knew that this was the right place for me. I will forever be thankful that I made the
decision to trust fate led me to this opportunity. My first year at The Australian Ballet School has honestly
been one of the greatest years of my life. I’m sure this was meant to be an important part of my dance
journey. The School and its people have been incredible. From the amazing teaching and facilities, to the
exceptional healthcare, The Australian Ballet School has it all and I genuinely can’t imagine myself anywhere
else. It has truly been one of the most monumental decisions of my life. I’m so grateful to be a student at this
extraordinary school.”
Training Achievements
• 2021 – Commenced training at The Australian Ballet School (Level 7)
• 2020 – Bloch Artiste
• 2020 – Accepted position at Staatiliche Ballettschule Berlin, then moved to English National Ballet School
• 2020 – Offered a position at European School of Ballet
• 2020 – Offered scholarship to Ecole Supérieure de Danse de Cannes Rosella Hightower
• 2020 – Offered a position at Elmhurst Ballet School
• 2019 – NSW RAD Bursary Winner
• 2019 – Semi-finalist at Alana Haines Australasian Awards Wellington, New Zealand and awarded a
scholarship to attend the Royal Danish Ballet Summer school Copenhagen, Denmark
• 2019 – Finalist at Isobel Anderson Awards RAD
• 2018 – Finalist at The Australian Ballet Scholarship Awards
We are thrilled to share The Australian Ballet’s 2022 Season with all our Friends.
David Hallberg has planned a season of time-honoured classical ballets and striking contemporary works; bringing us back to the theatre to experience storytelling and spectacle, and marvel at the possibilities of dance and art.
We invite you to join with us in celebrating this new era for ballet in Australia.
For more information about the 2022 Season, click here.
The Australian Ballet has made the exciting announcement that they, alongside GWB Entertainment, are co-producing An American in Paris in Australia in 2022, in a first-of-its-kind partnership.
An American in Paris is directed and choreographed by Tony Award-winner Christopher Wheeldon, acclaimed international contemporary ballet choreographer. Captivating audiences and critics alike, the production has garnered many accolades including twelve Tony Award nominations, winning the 2015 Tony Award for Best Choreography among other prestigious production awards.
An American in Paris is based off the Gene Kelly-starring 1951 MGM film of the same name and tells the entrancing story of a young American soldier and a beautiful French girl, set against the iconic backdrop of the most romantic city in the world. Wheeldon brings the enchantment and magic of Paris alive on stage with popular songs by George and Ira Gershwin.
David Hallberg said: “An American in Paris has been adapted for the stage by one of the world’s most in-demand choreographers and we have a great and long-standing relationship with Christopher. It’s exciting to be collaborating with him again, but this time on a musical, and we welcome the opportunity for a number of our dancers to perform in this incredible production and broaden their skills as artists.”
The Australian premiere production will tour Brisbane, Adelaide, Perth, Melbourne and Sydney, and will feature Australian Ballet dancers in the cast.
With Australian Ballet dancers joining the cast, An American in Paris will debut to Australian audiences at Brisbane’s QPAC Lyric Theatre in January 2022. It will then go on to play in Adelaide and Perth before arriving at Arts Centre Melbourne’s State Theatre in March, and at Theatre Royal Sydney in April.
