Chrystal Dance Prize – Training

Over $7,000 for Emerging Dance Artists Through Two Dance Awards

In 2023, Dance Victoria will award over $7,000 for emerging dance artists wishing to study at recognized institutions. Award guidelines will be available on March 1, 2023 when applications open.

Chrystal Dance Prize – Training
Deadline: April 14, 2023

The Chrystal Dance Prize is generated from a bequest made by Dance Victoria patron, Dr. Betty “Chrystal” Kleiman, to the Victoria Foundation. A committee of dance professionals is assembled each year to select the recipients.

• Applicants must be western Canadian dance artists (a permanent address in Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta, British Columbia, or any Territory) wishing to train full-time at a recognized institution outside Canada.
• Dance Victoria encourages artists from diverse communities to apply for the Chrystal Dance Prize. We welcome applications from persons of colour, Indigenous peoples, persons with disabilities, persons of all sexual orientations and genders, and others who may contribute to the further diversification and advancement of dance in our community.
• Intensives and summer programs are not eligible.
• Preference is given to Victoria residents; however, some years no Victoria students apply making it an open field.
• If artists are entering a second or third year of study and living in a foreign country, their permanent address or place of origin must be in western Canada.

Past CDPs have been awarded for students attending The Juilliard School, The School of American Ballet, the Alonzo King LINES Ballet Training Program, Palucca Hochschule fur Tanz (Germany) and more.

Arabella and Robert Award for Dance
Deadline: April 14, 2023

The Arabella and Robert Award for Dance is generated from a fund established by Dance Victoria patrons, Arabella Martin and Robert Britten, held at the Victoria Foundation. The Chrystal Dance Prize – Training committee also selects the recipients for this award.

• Applicants must be a resident of Canada wishing to train full-time at a recognized international dance conservatory or institution (inside or outside of Canada)

In May 2022, Dance Victoria announced three winners of the 2021/22 Chrystal Dance Prize – Training category and the Arabella and Robert Award for Dance for emerging dance artists. A panel of dance professionals selected the winners through an application process.

Kiana Bell from Vancouver, who is studying ballet and contemporary dance at Joffrey Academy of Ballet in Chicago, Illinois, receives $3,175, with $2,000 awarded from the Chrystal Dance Prize – Training and $1, 175 from the Arabella and Robert Award for Dance. A graduate of the Zurich University of the Arts with a Certificate in Professional Dance, Kiana will use the funds as she enters her second year of studies in the Joffrey Academy Trainee Program.

Isabel Tornqvist from Calgary was awarded $2,000 through the Chrystal Dance Prize – Training. Isabel is working towards her Performing Arts Diploma in Professional Dance from Trinity College London in association with Elmhurst Ballet School and the Birmingham Royal Ballet, United Kingdom.

Robin Butterfield from Victoria was awarded $2,000 through the Chrystal Dance Prize – Training. Robin will graduate this year from the Victoria Academy of Ballet and will use the funds to complete a Certificate in Contemporary Dance in the DART Dance Student Program (DSP) in Berlin, Germany.

The Chrystal Dance Prize is awarded twice annually. The Training category supports emerging western Canadian dance artists continuing their full-time training at an international institution. The Projects category supports independent artists, companies or collectives working on exceptional projects with an international artist (interpreter or choreographer).

Read the media release for additional details about the 2021/22 Chrystal Dance Prize – Training winners.