Eighteen-year-old Australian dancer Ernesto Young has been awarded a 2025 Marten Bequest Travelling Scholarship, valued at $50,000, in recognition of his outstanding potential in ballet.
Now based in Berlin, Ernesto is continuing his full-time training abroad, supported by the generous funding that will assist him to further his artistic development through international study and performance opportunities over the next two years. The scholarships, administered by Creative Australia on behalf of Perpetual as trustee, aim to support the professional growth of young Australian artists across various disciplines.
Originally from Sydney, Ernesto trained under Hilary Kaplan and Archibald McKenzie at Alegria Dance Studios. He was a finalist in the 2024 Sydney Eisteddfod Ballet Scholarship and went on to represent Australia at the Royal Academy of Dance’s prestigious Margot Fonteyn International Ballet Award (The Fonteyn) in London. There, he received both the Bronze Medal and the Choreographic Award, distinguishing himself not only as a promising performer but also as a creative thinker in the studio.
Now training at the Staatliche Balletschule Berline, Ernesto is continuing to work hard and distinguish himself. “Tomorrow, I’m performing in the Deutsche Oper in the Berlinst Balletschule Gala,” he told Dance Australia. “I’m lucky enough to do the lead role in a piece by Arshak Ghalumyan, and I’ve been working so, so hard to perfect my craft and learn from the incredible dancers around me.”
Thoughtful, humble well spoken, Ernesto has always shown maturity in his dancing, qualities that have only deepened since moving overseas. “I think there’s kind of a stigma about leaving home when you’re 15 and going to these big schools,” he reflects. “But I'm realising you actually need some mental maturity and life experience to deal with culture change and being alone in tough European winters.”
He describes the experience of studying in Berlin as transformative. “Berlin is seriously the epicentre in Europe for art and culture and expressing yourself,” he says. “There’s so much happening in the art scene. I’ve learnt so much about myself – I feel like I’m really finding myself as an artist, especially through contemporary.”
Living in a boarding house attached to his school, Ernesto has also been learning German, which he describes as “not as ugly a language as I first thought – once you start to understand it, you realise how expressive it can be.”
Receiving the Marten Bequest has been life-changing. “A couple of days before the announcement, I was talking to my mum and we were saying what a dream it would be if I could receive that kind of support. When I found out, I called her straight away – she just started crying.”
“I couldn’t process what had happened. Moving overseas during a cost-of-living crisis, with my mum supporting me and the rest of my family – the future felt uncertain. The scholarship is going to help me in so many ways,” he adds. “It will go towards tuition, ballet equipment, rent and living expenses – and I hope I’ll still have some left after graduation to travel for auditions and pursue choreographic projects or intensives to expand my knowledge.”
Now surrounded by peers from across the globe, Ernesto feels inspired by the competitive and collaborative energy of his new environment. “Now that I’m in a class with all boys, I feel like I’m being pushed ten times more. There’s this healthy competition, and being surrounded by different languages, cultures, and values – it’s the most beautiful thing to witness.”
The Marten Bequest Travelling Scholarships were established by John Chisholm Marten, a passionate supporter of the arts and a practising artist himself, to enable young Australians to broaden their horizons through study and exploration. Each scholarship provides $50,000 in funding, distributed quarterly over two years, and can be used for training either interstate or overseas.
Previous recipients include Brayden Gallucci and Harrison Lee, both now dancing with The Royal Ballet.