Chris Rodgers-Wilson, a 25 year old from the Melbourne suburb of Camberwell, received the generous $20,000 cash prize last Friday night at the Sydney Opera House, following the opening night performance of Alexei Ratmansky’s Cinderella.
The award is sponsored by the Australian Ballet’s Principal Partner, Telstra.
Rodgers-Wilson, who returned to Australia in 2011 to dance with the Australian Ballet after working in the UK, won the award after being judged on several specific criteria over the course of the year, competing against five other young hopefuls. All six nominees documented their Telstra Ballet Dancer Award journey via the social media platform Instagram, amassing over 3500 followers and delighting fans with a fascinating visual insight into their daily lives as ballet dancers.
