The Acorn Foundation and the trustees of the FAME Trust are pleased to announce the selection for the $10,000 2024 Emerging Practitioner Award recipient at the University of Auckland. Seven promising students are selected each year from top-rated performing arts schools in New Zealand.

Dancer Amy Griffin is this year’s recipient from the University of Auckland. Amy is a talented, passionate, and driven dancer, educator, and researcher. She has been dancing since the age of 7 and has dedicated her adult life and education to improving her craft and sharing the knowledge and skills she has gained with others. She began working as a dance teacher at several studios around Auckland this year as she continued to embark on her studies and has greatly enjoyed the opportunity to help the next generation of New Zealand dancers grow. Amy received a secondment with the Australian Dance Theatre as part of her studies this year, which has enriched both her skills and her confidence. Originally from Hawkes Bay, Amy went to Karamū High School in Hastings, where she excelled in a range of creative activities.

University of Auckland lecturer Alys Longley said, “Amy's work was mature, intelligent, and original. She impressed me with her courageous ideas and her curiousity.”

In 2025, Amy will continue her work towards a Master of Dance Studies. Her research has focused on the mind-body connection, and how that can be expressed through dance. She strives to enrich the overall dance community, and particularly broader cultural understandings of health, wellness, and bodily awareness. She wants to continue to use her platforms to showcase and elevate underrepresented voices in the world of dance.

Amy wrote “Receiving this award means more than just financial relief—it is a profound encouragement to continue exploring new and innovative approaches in dance. Receiving this award affirms my belief in the transformative power of dance and its ability to intersect with all things living, creating, making and it gives me the confidence and resources to push the boundaries of my work and to contribute to a more vibrant and inclusive artistic ecosystem in New Zealand.”

This award will allow Amy to continue her studies as she strives to enrich the Auckland and New Zealand dance communities through her talent and scholarship.