Princess Grace Foundation Reveals Winners and Honoraria Recipients for 2026 Awards
The awards recognize talent across theater, dance and film.
The Princess Grace Foundation-USA has announced its 2026 class of Princess Grace Award winners, Honoraria recipients, Artist Fellows, Special Project grant recipients and Grace Kelly Scholarship winners, recognizing emerging talent across theater, dance and film.
Dedicated to preserving the legacy of Princess Grace of Monaco, the foundation supports early-career artists through grants and professional development opportunities. This year's honorees join a network of more than 1,000 Princess Grace Award winners and Honoraria recipients.
In theater, the 2026 Princess Grace Awards recognize composer, performer and writer Anuj Bhutani, nominated by Beth Morrison Projects and recipient of the Robert and Gloria Hausman Theater Honor; composer, writer and performing artist Kate Eberstadt, nominated by Ars Nova and recipient of the Gant Gaither Theater Honor; actor, writer, producer and singer-songwriter Sapu-D'jano, nominated by The Juilliard School and recipient of the Grace Le Vine Theater Honor; scenic designer Michael Ruiz-del-Vizo, nominated by Queensborough Community College and recipient of the Fabergé Theater Honor; and performer and creative artist Alysia Velez, nominated by Manhattan School of Music and recipient of the John Gore Theater Honor.
The foundation also recognized Theater Honoraria recipients Satya Chávez, nominated by Goodman Theatre; Lour, nominated by National Queer Theater; costume and scenic designer Sveta Moroz, nominated by The Imaginists; and director and lighting designer Ava Elizabeth Novak, nominated by 2021 Princess Grace Award winner nicHi douglas. Playwright Madison Fiedler was named the recipient of the New Dramatists Playwriting Fellowship.
Dance Performance Awards were presented to Mason Evans, nominated by 2017 Princess Grace Award winner Jacquelin Harris; India Hobbs, nominated by 2009 Princess Grace Award winner Andrea Miller and GALLIM; Demetrius Lee, nominated by Saint Louis Dance Theatre; and Destin Morisset, nominated by 2010 Princess Grace Award winner Kyle Abraham and A.I.M by Kyle Abraham. Dance Performance Honoraria recipients are Seth Gibson, nominated by 1995 Princess Grace Award winner Mario Alberto Zambrano, and Kalen Simpson, nominated by George Mason University School of Dance.
In choreography, Tsai Hsi Hung, nominated by South Chicago Dance Theatre, and Jordan Johnson, nominated by the USC Glorya Kaufman School of Dance, received Princess Grace Awards. Starinah Dixon, nominated by 2012 Princess Grace Award winner Michelle Dorrance and Dorrance Dance, received a Choreography Honorarium.
Film and animation recipients include Ana A. Alpizar, nominated by New York University Tisch School of the Arts and recipient of the Sir Roger Moore Film Honor; Chelsi Bullard, nominated by Brown Girls Doc Mafia and recipient of the John H. Johnson Film Honor; Dzan Harba, nominated by 2024 Princess Grace Award winner Gustavo René Sanabria; Brit Hensel, nominated by Upstander Project; Annie Ning, nominated by Columbia University School of the Arts and recipient of the Cary Grant Film Honor; and Samuel Wright Smith, nominated by New York University Tisch School of the Arts and recipient of the Stephen Hillenburg Animation Honor.
Film Honoraria recipients are Hadley Austin, nominated by Create Humanity; Madeline Babuka Black, nominated by the California Institute of the Arts School of Film/Video; Maissa Lihedheb, nominated by 2001 Princess Grace Award winner Ham Tran; and María del Mar Rosario, nominated by 2018 Princess Grace Award winner Rafael Samanez.
The foundation also announced eight Special Project grants for previous Princess Grace Award recipients: Naomi Funaki for Ikigai; Haisi Hu for Swim Lessons; Victor Lodato for HONEY; Riley O'Flynn for and our flowers pass; Mary Prescott for Ancestral Table; Gazelle Samizay for Mapping the Unseen; Christian A. Warner for We Gather Here; and Yuan Yuan for Heading South.
Established in partnership with MAP Fund in 2025, the Princess Grace Artist Fellowship provides unrestricted grants, coaching and professional development. The 2026 fellows are Ifeyinwa Arinze, Tommie-Waheed Evans, Sadieh Rifai and Ching Ching Wong.
The foundation also announced its Grace Kelly Scholarships, which support high school theater artists through a partnership with the Educational Theatre Foundation.
Grace Kelly Training Scholarships were awarded to Rolando Arias, Hayden Diecidue, Brooke Jones, Ansu Kosiah, Jaida Miller and Alexander Mezger.
First-year Grace Kelly Scholarship recipients are Natalie Arciniega, Brenna Charlick, Ka'Sean Francis, Holden Sysler, Jasiah Taylor and Sarnie Vigon. Continuing scholarship recipients include second-year students Aaron Ballentine, Alyssa Dorsey, Jordin Gayle, Lyric Patino and Roger Wang; third-year students Reagan Bliss, Kenna Edwards, Emily Hacking, Megan Janger, Elizabeth Keller and Liam Redford; and fourth-year students Zari McIntosh, Zalah Vallien and Isis Washington.
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