Calvin Richardson, who was a finalist in the Prix de Lausanne in Switzerland this year, has accepted an offer of a full scholarship to the Royal Ballet School in London.
Richardson was swamped with offers following his performance in the finals. Part or full scholarships were thrown at his feet by the Munich Ballet Academy, the National Ballet School of Canada, the Hamburg Ballet School, the Amsterdam School of the Arts and the Royal Conservatory of the Hague, Netherlands. The director of the Compania Nacional de Danza in Madrid, Jose Martinez, invited Calvin to come to Madrid whenever suited him to spend some time with his company.
Calvin also accepted a scholarship for the Netherland Dance Theatre’s Summer Intensive, which he will attend during his summer vacation from the Royal Ballet School.
Calvin is a Year 12 student at Victorian College of the Arts Secondary School. He joined VCASS three years ago with little ballet training and a passion for jazz and tap. He aspired to a career in music theatre and the idea of a career in ballet or contemporary dance was the furthest thing from his mind.
As a result of his talent, commitment and facility he progressed at an extraordinary rate and the school decided to enter him for the Prix de Lausanne. He was one of five Australians chosen to attend the competition, and one of only two Australians to reach the final. (The other, Nikolaus Tudorin, won a Prix de Lausanne “espoire”.) For his solos Calvin performed Siegfried’s Solo from Act 3 of Swan Lake and Didy Veldman’s contemporary solo, Outsight. He travelled to the competition under the supervision of his coach, Maggie Lorraine, the ballet studies coordinator at the VCASS.
See our earlier story on the competition: www.yaffa.com.au/news/australian-wins-at-the-prix-de-lausanne