Year 9 dancer Alyssia to perform in New York gala 28 February 2024

Talented Year 9 dancer Alyssia has qualified for one of the world’s largest student dance competitions, the Youth America Grand Prix (YAGP) and has been invited to perform in front of 2,000 people at the 25th Anniversary Gala at the Lincoln Center in New York City on Thursday 18 April.

In the competition, Alyssia came in the top 12 for contemporary ballet and together with this significant achievement, she was awarded a bursary to cover the cost of rehearsals for the gala where she will perform on stage with the international contemporary ensemble.

A valued member of the BMS dance community and a member of the Power Academy of Dance, she came fifth in the finals of the Ballet Grand Prix in Dundee, Scotland earlier this month, competing against students from around the world. Her display there earned her a place on a summer intensive ballet course in Italy for which she was awarded a bursary to cover half of her costs.

Alyssia is also a mid-associate for the Royal Ballet School, a prestigious opportunity for the most talented young dancers to study additional classes on Saturdays designed to augment an individual’s current training programme.

Most recently, Alyssia performed a solo in the Birmingham Royal Ballet’s (BRB) Sleeping Beauty Dreams production. BRB is one of the world’s great touring ballet companies and an authority in both classic ballet and contemporary dance.

Rachael Bradley-Smith, Head of Dance at BMS, said: “It is very rare to teach such an intuitive and talented dancer. Alyssia will, I have no doubt, have an incredibly successful dancing career. Her talents cross all dance genres, and she is also gifted at both singing and piano. She is a pleasure to teach and a credit to all her dance teachers and BMS alike. I watched Alyssia perform a solo as part of the Birmingham Royal Ballet’s Sleeping Beauty Dreams performance at the weekend and it was spectacular.”