Interview with Zai Calliste
We were delighted to be the first to interview Zai Calliste after receiving his Emerging Artist award on Thursday 28 May. We discussed his meteoric year and discovered how joining our stage alongside English National Ballet Principal Dancers Gareth Haw and Emma Hawes for Ballet Under the Stars 2025, made his transition from vocational to professional dancer feel seamless.
Photo credit: Isabella Turolla
Zai Calliste is an Artist with the English National Ballet. Originally from Australia, Zai trained at Annette Roselli's Dance Academy in Brisbane before crossing the pond to join the prestigious English National Ballet School. He joined the Covent Garden Dance Company for Ballet Under the Stars at Hatch House in July 2026 - his first professional performance after being accepted into the English National Ballet company. We have been delighted to support his career and to welcome him back to dance at Hatch House in July 2026.
Huge congratulations on your Emerging Artist award! How are you feeling.
Honestly, I am still in shock! I am ecstatic, shocked and happy. Tonight, I really felt in the moment, without stressing too much, and that’s something I’ve really tried to work on. I am very grateful for everyone who helped me.”
Photo credit: Isabella Turolla
Since performing at Hatch House in July last year, tell us what you have been doing and what are you currently working on.
Three things all at once! Romeo & Juliet, Sleeping Beauty and I have also been preparing for the ENB’s Emerging Dancer Award. It has always been a dream of mine and I am so honoured to have done it. As a result, I have been rehearsing Marius Petipa’s Le Talisman every day, working hard on building up the stamina as it is a full on pas de deux. It has been a massive learning curve, being coached by Carmen Picares and ENB principal, Gareth Haw who has also been coaching me.
Getting to know Gareth at Hatch House last year was amazing. We built a connection before company classes had even started, and it felt like I had a friend in the company as a new graduate, just at the right time, before I started the season.
I have also loved touring this year. At school you wait anxiously for that one performance, but since joining the company you get the change to dive deep into roles and bring something new to different audiences. That is important to me and why I chose ENB.
CGDC is turning 20 this year at Hatch House. How would you summarise the ethos of the company?
The ethos is exciting, fresh and supportive. Matt and the company really foster the art form and carry it forward whilst also maintaining the traditions of the art. Creating galas in new venues and bringing it to new audiences is so important.
Zai dancing at Hatch House in 2025 - photo credit: Alice Pennefather
What was it like performing at Hatch House last year?
It came as such a welcome surprise after graduating from the English National Ballet School. When Lynne Charles, told me about the invitation, I was so excited to do it. Ballet Under the Stars was my first professional gig out of ballet school.
The garden scenery is such an interesting place to dance and share the art form with new audiences outside of a theatre. It is not every day you get to dance in such a beautiful outdoor setting. It was so lovely to bring our art to an open space.
For me performing at Hatch House bridged the gap between professional and student and that opportunity was so important. I was able to see how the professionals prepare, get advice and watch their craft, that all helped me to start my journey.
How are you feeling about dancing at Ballet Under the Stars in its 20th anniversary year?
I am so excited to be asked to be back again. Hatch House 2025 was the highlight of my year last year. So this year, I am excited to show something different and new and hopefully bring a more mature performance.
Photo credit: Isabella Turolla
You will be performing alongside some world-renowned artists, what are you most looking forward to?
Connections honestly; just the fact that we all the share the same industry, you never know when it may be useful or valuable. Plus you get the chance to build lifelong partnerships and friendships. You also get to see how artists prepare and how they manage stress and anxiety, this is not something you are prepared for at school, to just step out in front of hundreds of thousands of people to do a solo or lead role.
Who are you most looking forward to sharing the stage with?
Hard question. I would say Viola Pantuso. We have met a lot through coincidences, through friends and she is so up and coming and so close in age to me, doing amazing things. Getting to share the stage with her will be incredible.
What will you be dancing?
As part of the ENB’s Emerging Artist Award, I have been preparing and rehearsing and will therefore be performing Marius Petipa’s Le Talisman, so Taela and I will dance this. We are also hoping to perform a new neo classical piece, that Taela and I would like to put to Matt. Finally, I will be dancing a solo piece called Nature boy by company member, Rentaro Nakaakai, which he has choreographed on me for Emerging Dancer.
As soon as the performances at Hatch are over, I start my second season at ENB, so I will going straight to bed and heading into rehearsals the next morning!
Photo credit - Isabella Turolla
What do you hope the audience at Ballet Under the Stars will feel when they watch you dance?
Moved and inspired. Ballet can be seen as out of people’s grasp, but in reality, we all feel emotions, and through ballet, we are all able to connect through the emotions portrayed through the body.
I hope to bring connection to the art on a deeper level and not allow it to be about how many good pirouettes we do.
Is ballet a dying art?
The impact of Timothée Chalamet’s statement can be interpreted in a few different ways – Firstly, it was a very shallow comment, especially given he was raised in a family in the industry, and he should reflect on that. It is easy to immediately go to the negative of everything, but what he did unknowingly was that he brought people back to the theatre and to watch ballet. I try and look at things positively.
Obviously my first reaction was we put our heart and soul into this art form and spend years tying to perfect it, but also thank you! For putting us back in the spotlight and reinvigorating the art with younger and diverse audiences!
Ballet is a tradition, it gets passed down and perhaps his comment being heard by younger generations will actually bring it to a wider and younger range of demographics; each with their own approach and each different age group bringing their own influence.
What would your favourite role to dance be?
Hmm, it’s really hard as I am still so new to all of them. I think, Carmen is the one I am most looking forward to performing in. I saw it when I was at the English National Ballet school and it was amazing.
Photo credit: Isabella Turolla
Tell us three things people don’t know about you.
A) I used to play rugby league when I went to ballet school in Australia.
B) I like fashion. For me it is another form of creativity and self-expression.
C) I love horror films – Conjuring 2 is my favourite!
