PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — A local ballet dancer is getting the chance of a lifetime after placing well at the Youth America Grand Prix ballet scholarship competition (also referred to as the “American Idol of ballet”) in New Jersey over the weekend.
“This is just a dream come true,” said Katie Cerny, a teenager and student with the Philadelphia Ballet. “...I’ve been training with Davit Karapetyan [her dance instructor] and the Philadelphia Ballet and they’ve taught me so much through stage presence and they’ve helped my technique.”
Come the end of the month, Cerny will be heading to Switzerland to compete in the Prix de Lausanne, an international dance competition.
She says she is really looking forward to learning from all the teachers and dancers there.
The competition hosts the top 80 ballet students from around the world. Cerny is one of 10 American females chosen.
Students who place well not only win scholarships but typically go on to dance professionally for companies like American Ballet Theatre, Paris Opera Ballet, Dutch National Ballet, and New York City Ballet.
Over the past 25 years at the American Grand Prix alone, more than $5 million has been awarded in scholarships to the world’s leading dance schools, with up to $350,000 now awarded annually.
Karapetyan says it’s been a long journey, but it only gets better from here.
And as for Cerny — she says she’ll do her best to represent Philly while competing.