The Royal Ballet announces promotions, joiners and leavers

The Royal Ballet's artistic director Kevin O'Hare announced promotions, joiners and leavers for the upcoming 2025-2026 season on 27th June 2025.

There are no promotions to the rank of Principals but it is nice to see young talent get promoted to the next levels.

Promotions

• Isabel Lubach, Viola Pantuso, Julia Roscoe, Amelia Townsend and Harris Bell are promoted to Soloist.

• Olivia Findlay, Ella Newton Severgnini, Hanna Park, Maddison Pritchard, Ginevra Zambon, Denilson Almeida and Caspar Lench are promoted to First Artist.

The Aud Jebsen Young Dancer programme

• From the 24/25 Season intake, Francesca Lloyd, Katie Robertson, Rebecca Myles Stewart, Ravi Cannonier-Watson, Emile Gooding and Alejandro Muñoz now become Artists.

• For the 2025/26 Season, seven graduates from The Royal Ballet School join the Aud Jebsen Young Dancers Programme: Aurora Chinchilla, LilySophia Dashwood, Shani Moran-Simmonds, Yuki Nagayasu, Amos Child, Tristan-Ian Massa and Joe Parkinson.

Leavers

• First Soloist Itziar Mendizabal leaves to take up a new teaching position at The Royal Ballet School.

• After 21 years, Soloist Romany Pajdak leaves at the end of the Season.

• Soloist Benjamin Ella will retire as a performer after 16 years in December 2025.

• First Artist Katharina Nikelski takes a leave of absence in the 2025/26 Season to pursue an MBA.

• The 2024/25 Prix de Lausanne dancer, Airi Kobayashi, leaves at the end of the Season to join Birmingham Royal Ballet.

• Pianist Timothy Qualtrough retires after 33 years. He will continue to work with the company as a freelance pianist.

• Constant Lambert Fellow Yi Wei, Jette Parker Ballet Conductor José Salazar and Associate Pianist Wing Tung Fan

Joiners

• Zhan Atymtayev as Répétiteur

• Subin Kim as the new Constant Lambert Fellow conductor

• Giovanni Fanizza as the Jette Parker Ballet Conductor

• Anastasia Matkovskaia as Associate Pianist

Staff members

• Christina Cefai has been appointed in a new Ballet Healthcare role as Ballet Data Scientist. Dr Patrick O’Halloran has left the Company, replaced by Dr Moiz Moghal as Medical Advisor.

• In The Royal Ballet team, Administrative Producer Ania Kapsza and Assistant Company Manager Natalie Holdys leave their roles at the end of the 2024/25 Season. Ted Blackburn joins as Assistant to the Company Manager in July 2025.

• Deputy Stage Manager Jaclyn Fulton takes a year’s sabbatical during the 2025/26 Season to pursue a Master's programme in Creative Producing at the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama.