The winners of the 2024 National Dance Awards—marking their 25th anniversary and voted on by the 60 dance critics in the Critics’ Circle for performances seen between 1 January and 31 December 2024—were announced at a ceremony at The Barbican Centre on 9 June 2025.
The Dancing Times Award for Best Male Dancer was jointly awarded to a hip-hop performer (Tommy Franzén) and a kathak dancer (Aakash Odedra), the first time it has been won by a dancer in either genre. Franzén also won the award for Outstanding Male Modern Performance, while Odedra won the Outstanding Male Classical Performance Award, the first time in 25 years it has been won by a dancer outside of ballet.
The De Valois Award for Outstanding Achievement was presented to Dame Siobhan Davies CBE, founder and director of Siobhan Davies Dance and the Siobhan Davies Studios in South London.
The choreography awards both went to North America, with Kyle Abraham taking the Best Modern Choreography for the second successive year for his Love Letter (on shuffle) performed by New York City Ballet, while Canadian choreographer Crystal Pite won her fourth NDA for Angel’s Atlas, performed by National Ballet of Canada. The lighting designer for Angel’s Atlas, Tom Visser, won the Outstanding Creative Contribution Award.
The Royal Ballet won the Stef Stefanou Award for Outstanding Company for the first time since taking it in 2004 and 2005. Caspar Lench of The Royal Ballet won the Emerging Artist Award, presented by Sir Matthew Bourne, and The Principles of Classical Dance, a co-production between the BalletBoyz and The Royal Ballet, won the Marquee TV Award for Best Dance Film.
Erina Takahashi, lead principal at English National Ballet, won the Best Female Dancer Award, and Beatrice Parma, a principal at Birmingham Royal Ballet, won the Outstanding Female Classical Performance Award. Ballet Black won the Best Short Dance Film for Mthuthuzeli November’s Burn From the Inside on its BBonFilm platform.
Acosta Danza won the Best Mid-Scale Company award, and London City Ballet won the Best Independent Company Award. Hannah Shepherd won the Outstanding Female Modern Performance Award for Ruination by Ben Duke for Lost Dog.
The full list of winners is:
De Valois Award for Outstanding Achievement: Dame Siobhan Davies
Dancing Times Award for Best Male Dancer: Tommy Franzén and Aakash Odedra
Best Female Dancer: Erina Takahashi
Stef Stefanou Award for Outstanding Company: The Royal Ballet
Best Mid-Scale Company: Acosta Danza
Best Independent Company: London City Ballet
Best Classical Choreography: Crystal Pite for Angels’ Atlas
Best Modern Choreography: Kyle Abraham for Love Letter (on shuffle)
Emerging Artist Award: Caspar Lench
Outstanding Female Modern Performance: Hannah Shepherd in Ruination
Outstanding Male Modern Performance: Tommy Franzén in The Mad Hatter’s Tea Party & Minotaur
Outstanding Female Classical Performance: Beatrice Parma in La Fille mal gardée
Outstanding Male Classical Performance: Aakash Odedra in Mehek
Outstanding Creative Contribution: Tom Visser
Best Dance Film: The Principles of Classical Ballet
Best Short Dance Film: Burn from the Inside