Call for nominations: The 2025 Hnatyshyn Foundation – Joysanne Sidimus Ballet Grant
March 12, 2025
The Hnatyshyn Foundation is now welcoming nominations for the 2025 Joysanne Sidimus Ballet Grant. Find the program’s guidelines, nomination process, and candidate criteria below!
Nomination deadline: April 23, 2025
Jeremy Blanton with Joysanne Sidimus, by Amleto Lorenzini. Courtesy of The National Ballet of Canada
About the Joysanne Sidimus Ballet Grant
As artists face financial uncertainty and a high cost of living, The Hnatyshyn Foundation – Joysanne Sidimus Ballet Grant, of $10,000, is designed to support an exceptionally talented young dancer by bridging the gap between their full-time training and professional practice.
Who can submit a nomination
Canadian ballet schools and companies are invited to nominate exceptional emerging ballet students and apprentices who are currently enrolled in a professional training program or apprenticeship that they will complete between 2025 and 2027 (depending on length of the program – see guidelines below).
An institution may submit up to two candidates per year. We encourage institutions to consider candidates who express financial need and/or who identify as part of a group that is underrepresented in Canadian ballet. A panel of advisors appointed by the Foundation will adjudicate the performance work of the nominees. The recipient of the grant will be notified this summer and will receive the grant in the fall.
Candidate criteria
Nominees will be identified by their institution on the basis of exceptional promise for a distinguished career in ballet.
Candidates must be:
Entering, within one year following the nomination deadline, (A) the final or penultimate year of a full-time ballet program at a qualified Canadian post-secondary educational or training institution, (B) a full-time professional training program of one year or less, or (C) a full-time apprenticeship with a professional ballet company;
Canadian citizens or permanent Canadian residents (holders of study permits or temporary resident visas are not eligible);
Nominated by their institution;
At least 16 years of age at the time of the nomination deadline.
Nomination process
To nominate a candidate, please download and fill out the nomination form available on our website. The form must be submitted by email to director@rjhf.com along with a letter of nomination of one page. Eligible nominees will be invited via email to submit their documentation to SlideRoom once their nomination is received.
Before submitting a nomination, please consult the full guidelines for this program: Guidelines & nomination form
2024 laureate: Alexander Stevens
Alexander Stevens was the inaugural laureate of this program. He is a student in the Canada’s National Ballet School’s Company Life Program. Now on the precipice of beginning his career as a professional dancer, Alexander aspires to join a ballet company that is renowned for its commitment to both classical and contemporary ballet. He hopes to embark on a lifelong journey of exploring ballet and dance in all their forms and to give back to these disciplines in a meaningful way.
“The Joysanne Sidimus Ballet Grant will allow me to focus on transitioning to a professional ballet career. I thank the jury for this recognition and Mavis Staines and my ballet teachers for their incredible guidance and encouragement.”
About Joysanne Sidimus, M.S.M. (Photo: Aleksandar Antonijevic)
We are extremely proud to name this award after Joysanne Sidimus, one of Canada’s most esteemed ballerinas and a former board member of The Hnatyshyn Foundation. Born in New York , Ms. Sidimus studied under George Balanchine at the School of American Ballet then joined his New York City Ballet. She later performed as a soloist with London’s Festival Ballet and as a Principal Dancer with the Pennsylvania Ballet and The National Ballet of Canada. She is co-founder of the Dancer Transition Resource Centre and was its Executive Director for twenty years. She is also the founding Vice President of the Artists’ Health Centre, a comprehensive health care facility for artists at Toronto Western Hospital. In 2003, she was awarded the Governor General’s Meritorious Service Medal and in 2006, she received the Governor General’s Performing Arts Award for Lifetime Artistic Achievement (Dance – 2006).
Donor: Lynda Hamilton (Photo: Aleksandar Antonijevic)
We sincerely thank Lynda Hamilton for generously funding this award and suggesting we name it after her friend and colleague. Ms. Hamilton has dedicated her career to supporting initiatives and institutions that offer artists support at various stages of their careers. She is co-founder of the Dancer Transition Resource Centre and founded the Valleyview Artist Retreat, offering free, week-long retreats for artists and arts administrators to find inspiration and respite. In 2021, she received the prestigious Ramon John Hnatyshyn Award for Volunteerism in the Arts.
