Céline Gittens, Principal, Birmingham Royal Ballet and former Gold medallist
Enter the spirit. Become part of the legacy.
About The Fonteyn
The Margot Fonteyn International Ballet Competition is the Royal Academy of Dance's flagship annual event.
The competition is one of the most prestigious ballet competitions in the world, attracting the finest young dancers trained in the RAD syllabus, from around the globe.
The dance competition is dedicated to promoting and rewarding standards of excellence in young ballet dancers internationally. This is achieved by offering aspiring dancers the unique opportunity to work with world-renowned choreographers and professionals, as well as the chance to perform on an international stage.
The semi-finals will take place at RAD headquarters in London on 26-27 October 2023, with the final to be held at a West End theatre on 29 October 2023.
History
The competition started in 1931, when the Adeline Genée Gold Medal was awarded to Felicity Garratt, and became known as ‘the Genée’.
In May 2019, the RAD renamed the 'Genée' to 'The Fonteyn' in honour of our longest-serving president, Dame Margot Fonteyn. We continue to honour our first president with the Adeline Genée Gold Medal for the best dancer.
Read more about the history.
Past medalists
Many past winners of the Genée and The Fonteyn have become professional dancers with companies worldwide.
For many, their careers have been long and varied as directors, artistic directors, ballet masters, teachers, administrators, dance critics, choreographers, TV producers, and directors.
Support The Fonteyn
The Margot Fonteyn International Ballet Competition and the events that surround it each year are funded by the Royal Academy of Dance centrally, local organising committee fundraising campaigns, and by sponsors. We also work with a range of partners who generously give their time and expertise to make The Fonteyn a reality each year.
If you are interested in becoming a partner or sponsor of The Fonteyn, please get in touch by emailing development@rad.org.uk.
RAD Headquarters
188 York Road
London SW11 3JZ
The Margot Fonteyn International Ballet Competition will be held at the new RAD global headquarters in London for the first time.
We are proud of our new building which gives us better education and training facilities for our members, students, teachers, examiners, and staff. These include seven brand new studios, the beautiful Aud Jebsen Studio Theatre, the Wolfson Library, and an archive housing and displaying our collection of over 75,000 dance and RAD-related objects.
Partners
The Dame
Margot Fonteyn Scholarship Fund
If you are interested in sponsoring The Fonteyn, please be in touch with us via email.
PHOTO CREDITS
Celine Gittens: courtesy of Birmingham Royal Ballet - Zoran Ras/shutterstock.com - Chi Wai Cheung @hiro graphics - Keith Sin @hiro graphics - GBL Wilson - Bruce Zinger - James Gifford-Mead - Royal Academy of Dance/ArenaPAL - Johan Persson - Lisa Stonehouse - Amber Mitchell-Knight: Courtesy of Amber Mitchell-Knight