Great news of Australian achievements overseas, all former Ecole Ballet and Dance Theatre students.
Tasman David (from New Zealand) made a huge move in 2011 - he went to Russia to join the Vaganova Academy in St Petersburg. He has now won a contract with Mikhailovsky Theatre Ballet Company (the home company of Natalia Osipova, Ivan Vasiliev and many other famous dancers).
Tasman trained in Australia at Ecole Ballet and Dance Theatre in Sydney and auditioned for the Vaganova Academy by DVD.
See the story we published about Tasman in 2012 here when he was still at the Academy and watch a video of him in class here
Another former Ecole student, Alison McWhinney, has also been covering herself in glory. Now a dancer with the English National Ballet, she has won the ENB Emerging Dancer Award (jointly with her partner in the competition, Junor Souza). The ENB award is an annual competition for the ENB to recognise and nurture talent and encourage excellence within its own ranks.
See Alison dancing:here
And Hanna Nussbaumer, who graduated from Ecole to Rambert School of Ballet and Contemporary Dance in London, has just been granted a contract with Norrdans Contemporary Dance Company in Sweden. No less than 980 dancers applied for the contract: 70 dancers auditioned and Hanna got the contract.
