The Australian Ballet has welcomed 10 new artists across multiple ranks, bringing a mix of emerging Australian talent and internationally acclaimed artists to the national ballet company.
Several dancers have already performed with the Company, others will make their Sydney mainstage debut before the end of 2025, with the remainder joining in 2026.
Appointed by Artistic Director David Hallberg, the new artists join the Company in multiple ranks, including Senior Artist, Soloist, Coryphée and Corps de Ballet.
The Australian Ballet shares a longstanding partnership with The Australian Ballet School, Australia’s leading centre for vocational ballet training. Each year, this close collaboration sees talented graduates transition into the Company.
In 2026, four graduates will join the Corps de Ballet: Natalie Henry (JPN), Bronte Mollison (CBR), Estelle Crompton-Lamb (SYD), and Stephanie McQuire (SYD). Many have already performed with the Company through secondments and work placements, underscoring the strength of this partnership.
Australian artists Isabella Howard (QLD) and LilySophia Dashwood (QLD) also return home after studying or dancing overseas, alongside Japanese dancer Nanami Inoue (JPN), all joining the Corps de Ballet. Several of these artists have already appeared in Manon, Prism and The Sleeping Beauty.
Three International artists will join in various ranks. Precious Adams (USA) joins as Senior Artist for our 2026 season. Internationally acclaimed, Precious is currently First Soloist with English National Ballet and has appeared in more than 750 performances since 2014. She was also named one of BBC 100 Women in 2019, recognised for her leadership and advocacy within the artform.
Marko Juusela (FIN) will join in the coming weeks as a Soloist. A graduate of the Vaganova Ballet Academy, Juusela began his professional career with the Mariinsky Theatre before performing as Soloist with the Polish National Ballet.
Damen Axtens (NZ) joins as a Coryphée, bringing experience from Birmingham Royal Ballet, Royal New Zealand Ballet and Paris Opera Ballet. A former student of The Australian Ballet School and the Royal Ballet School, Damen has recently performed with The Australian Ballet in Prism and the Melbourne season of Manon.
The Australian Ballet is the largest dance company in the country with seventy-eight full-time dancers representing ten countries. Over 70% of these dancers trained at The Australian Ballet School, among the highest percentage of company dancers from an associated school in the world.
“I’m thrilled to welcome this exceptional group of artists into the Company as we bring our 2025 season to a close and look ahead to 2026. The calibre of talent speaks to the strength of our artistic community both here in Australia and abroad,” said The Australian Ballet’s Artistic Director, David Hallberg.
“It’s deeply rewarding to see graduates from The Australian Ballet School step seamlessly into company life alongside experienced international artists. Together, they will help shape the next chapter of the Company and continue to inspire and captivate audiences with their artistry.”
Audiences will have the chance to see several of the newly announced dancers perform when David McAllister’s The Sleeping Beauty takes the stage in Sydney from 21 November to 17 December 2025, ahead of The Australian Ballet’s 2026 season.
For more information about The Australian Ballet, visit: www.australianballet.com.au for details.
Image: Artists of The Australian Ballet in The Sleeping Beauty (McAllister) – photo by David Kelly