Tel Aviv based choreographer Rachel Erdos is making her move on the international dance circuit.

The 30-year-old, who grew up in Newcastle, has scooped first prize at the Arhaus International Choreography Competition (AICC) in Denmark. She received the award — and 50,000 Danish kroner [around £5,000] — for her piece Alma, which means “apple” in Hungarian. The whole floor was covered with apples. She has also been invited to return to Denmark next spring to work on a new piece for the Mancopy Dance Company in Arhaus.

“I really didn’t expect to win,” she tells People. “It’s amazing and like a dream come true. It is a profession that you don’t normally get a seal of approval for.”

Ms Erdos graduated with a first-class honours in dance from the Roehampton Institute in London, and completed an MA, specialising in choreography, at the Laban Centre, London. She made aliyah six years ago and works as a freelance choreographer, working in a number of dance festivals. She also works as a rehearsal director for Yoram Karmi’s Fresco Dance Group and the Sally-Ann Friedland Dance Drama Company.

“I have always been into dancing but knew I didn’t want to be a dancer,” she says. “I wanted to make my own pieces, behind the scenes.”

Her winning piece, which beat 11 other entries, was danced by a duet to a specially composed score by Alberto Schwartz.

What’s next? “To continue creating.” She also intends to bring her work to England. “The dream is to carry on working on what I enjoy and hopefully find success along the way. This competition has definitely given me a step in the right direction.”