Anna Ol wins the Alexandra Radius Prize 2025

Anna Ol: “After ten years as a principal dancer with Dutch National Ballet and countless wonderful roles, this award is both a celebration of the past and an inspiration for the future. It is special to discover that my dedication and artistry have touched others. This prize gives even more meaning to all those years of hard – but joyful – work.”

Alexandra Radius Prize

The Alexandra Radius Prize is an initiative of the Friends of Dutch National Ballet foundation and is awarded annually to the dancer of Dutch National Ballet who has most stood out in the past season. The prize consists of €5,000 and an artwork donated by one of the Friends of Dutch National Ballet. This year marks the 36th presentation of the Alexandra Radius Prize.

The jury on Anna Ol

“Since joining the company in 2015, principal dancer Anna Ol (…) has consistently proven to be a remarkable talent, excelling through great technical purity and aesthetic perfection. In addition to the jury’s long-held admiration for her technique, last season brought great wonder at the ever-increasing expressive power of her dancing. Alongside her beautiful lines and strong physical control, the Siberian dancer added a variety of emotional layers to many of her roles, giving her performances much more depth and enabling her to connect with her audience not only as an artist but also as a human being.

In the title role of Pickett’s Lady Macbeth, she succeeded in making both the power-driven aggression and the heartbreaking vulnerability of her character fully palpable in all their depth and scope. In a completely different way, in Nutcracker & Mouse King – alongside her spot-on variations and duets – she captured the youthful innocence of Clara, without resorting to clichés or overly childish gestures or expressions. And in her exquisite interpretation of Robbins’ Other Dances, she convinced the jury with her sheer joy of dancing and the way her movement seemed to merge seamlessly with Chopin’s études.

Perhaps most of all, the jury was moved by Ol’s phenomenal performance in Emeralds, the first part of Balanchine’s triptych Jewels. With her striking lightness, elegance, nuance and variety of ‘tones’ – crowned with a beautifully felt melancholy – she seemed almost to embody the refined French perfume that Balanchine had in mind when creating the ballet.”

Jury Alexandra Radius Prize 2025

The jury for the 2025 Alexandra Radius Prize consisted of: Alexandra Radius (former principal dancer of Dutch National Ballet), Alexander Zhembrovskyy (former principal dancer of Dutch National Ballet and owner of his eponymous dance and fitness studios), Astrid van Leeuwen (dance journalist and publicist), Frederik Redelé (board member of Dutch National Opera & Ballet Fund) and Joan Termeer-Blom (Friend of Dutch National Ballet).