Prize recipients announced for the 2026 Kathleen Gorham Awards
The Royal Academy of Dance (RAD) is pleased to announce the prize recipients for the Kathleen Gorham Awards 2026, held on Sunday 16 August at the Victorian College of the Arts Secondary School (VCASS) in Melbourne.
The Kathleen Gorham Memorial Awards provide RAD students with opportunities to build confidence in performance, gain valuable stage experience and develop skills to prepare for future competitions. Students from Intermediate Foundation through to Solo Seal participated in classes and performances, with finalists selected from each vocational level before performing their variation for an audience.
Students had the opportunity to learn from and be assessed by an exceptional panel of leading dance professionals. Classes were taught by Deborah Johnson, an experienced ballet educator and RAD Examiner with more than 30 years of experience, while the adjudication panel comprised Wendy Holt, RAD Examiner; Claire Phipps, Academy of Queensland Ballet; and Lucinda Dunn, former Principal Artist with The Australian Ballet and educator at The Australian Ballet School.
The expertise of the teaching and adjudication panel reflects the high standard of training and performance opportunities the RAD provides for its students.
Adjudicator Claire Phipps reflected: “It was a joy adjudicating the Kathleen Gorham Awards, and I left feeling inspired for the future of dance in Australia. What impressed me was the dancer’s willingness to push themselves through class content and experiment with their artistry in their variations. I witnessed a maturity and professionalism beyond their years, which is by no means common or indeed expected. I look forward to following and engaging with these dancers as they forge into the industry.”
For the second year in a row, Milla Calyk has been named the Kathleen Gorham Overall Winner and recipient of the $1,000 Kathleen Gorham Memorial Award Scholarship.
The 2026 Kathleen Gorham Awards results were as follows:
Intermediate Foundation: Winner Kayla Sun – Point Cook Performance Arts; Runner Up Ava Wang – Brian Nolan Academy of Dance; Artistry Award Amy (ShiWen) Su – Jiayin Masterclass; Encouragement Award Ellie Clark – Expressions Ballet Academy.
Intermediate: Winner Emily Hu – Brian Nolan Academy of Dance; Runner Up Blake Robertson – VCASS; Artistry Award Lucy Hawkins – VCASS; Encouragement Award Harper Luong – Academy of Dance Australia.
Advanced Foundation: Winner Claudia Westrup – The National Ballet School; Runner Up Luke Jonisuke Holt – VCASS; Artistry Award Tim Cheng – Jiayin Masterclass; Encouragement Award Henry Forbes – Expressions Ballet Academy.
Advanced 1: Winner Jasper Zajacek-Tieu – VCASS; Runner Up Stella Bateman – Jane Moore Academy of Ballet; Artistry Award Swiss Strickland – Expressions Ballet Academy; Encouragement Award Fletcher Thomas – The National Ballet School.
Advanced 2 & Solo Seal: Winner Eden-Rose Driver – VCASS; Runner Up Ella Eastoe – VCASS; Artistry Award Thomas Smithers – Jane Moore Academy of Ballet; Encouragement Award Chloe Lahood – VCASS.
In addition to the category awards, Luke Jonisuke Holt received the Martin Rubinstein Most Potential Award, while Swiss Strickland received the Paul Hammond Encouragement Award. Claudia Westrup was awarded the Australian Ballet School Scholarship, Zara Azzopardi received the Sydney Dance Company Scholarship, and Henry Forbes and Jasper Zajacek-Tieu received Academy of Queensland Ballet Scholarships.
Congratulations to all students who participated in the 2026 Kathleen Gorham Awards, with particular recognition to the finalists and prize recipients for their dedication, artistry and commitment.
To learn more, visit au.royalacademyofdance.org.
Photo credit Belinda Strodder Photography