The National Ballet of Japan

danse.org The National Ballet of Japan

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The National Ballet of Japan will be staging the World Premiere of

Story of a Little Mermaid

New Commissioned Work by the NBJ

Choreography by: Kaikawa Tetsuo
Music by: Claude DEBUSSY / Jules MASSENET and others

OPERA PALACE: 27 – 30 July 2024 ( 8 Performances )

Little Mermaid costume design

In order to provide the next generation of children with the opportunity to come into contact with the wonderful art form of ballet, the New National Theatre Tokyo has been running the "Ballet for Children" series since 2009.

. In the summer of 2024, the National Ballet of Japan will be performing the world premiere of a new ballet based on the universally beloved Hans Christian Andersen's fairy tale, The Little Mermaid as Ballet for Children 2024.

This work is directed and choreographed by Kaikawa Tetsuo, ex- First Soloist / Principal Character Artist of the National Ballet of Japan
who left the company in 2022 to pursue his career as professional choreographer after his 22 years as a company dancer.
Kaikawa participated in the initial launch of the "NBJ Choreographic Group", a project to train choreographers from within the NBJ, and has also showcased numerous works.
He eagerly engages in choreographic works and Kaikawa was a creative member of the NNTT's transgenre Opera project with mixed media and
A.I. 'New Opera with Children
and an Android Super Angels' with the New National Theatre Tokyo in 2021.
Creative staff include Kawaguchi Naoji, who has also worked on set design for numerous works of NNTT's Opera and Ballet, and costume designer Ueda Kazuko, who has frequently collaborated with Kaikawa. Together, they will create the world for our new production of The Little Mermaid.
Leaving the sea behind, a mermaid who dreamed of joining the human world experiences the joy of love, the pain of sadness, and much more.
The bittersweet love story of The Little Mermaid is brought to you as an original ballet from the National Ballet of Japan.
Please enjoy this charming ballet, sure to delight audiences of all ages, as a summer vacation memory.

Little Mermaid set design

The National Ballet of Japan announces
Principal Dancer Promotions

The National Ballet of Japan

Hayami Photo: Shikama Takashi

The National Ballet of Japan is delighted to announce that Shibayama Saho and Hayami Shogo will be promoted to Principal dancer from the 2023/2024 Season. After the performance of Swan Lake on 17 June, Artistic Director of Ballet & Dance Yoshida Miyako announced this promotion in front of an audience.

SHIBAYAMA Saho

Shibayama Photo: Shikama Takashi

Shibayama Saho was born in Tokyo and trained under Tanaka Yoko, Svetlana Osiyeva, Dennis Marshall and Marjorie Grundvig. She studied at Ballet Studio DUO, the Harid Conservatory and Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre School. She joined the National Ballet of Japan as Soloist in 2014 and has danced leading roles of The Nutcracker, Swan Lake, La Bayadère, Don Quixote, Raymonda, Moriyama Kaiji’s RYUUGUU - The Turtle Princess, Giselle, Roland Petit’s Coppélia, Frederick Ashton’s Cinderella and The Dream. She also danced George Balanchine's Theme and Variations, Symphony in C 1st Movement. She was promoted to First Soloist in 2021.

HAYAMI Shogo

Hayami Photo: Hasegawa Kiyonori

Hayami Shogo was born in Kyoto Prefecture. He studied at John Cranko School Stuttgart Ballet. He won Gold medal and Outstanding Artistry Award in the New York City Finals at the Youth America Grand Prix. He joined the Houston Ballet in 2015, and the National Ballet of Japan as Soloist in 2018 and made his debut as the leading role in Don Quixote in 2020. He performed the leading roles of Moriyama Kaiji’s RYUUGUU - The Turtle Princess, Giselle, The Nutcracker and the Mouse King, Roland Petit’s Coppélia and Frederick Ashton’s The Dream. His repertory also includes Bronze Idol in La Bayadère, the Djinn of lamp in David Bintley's Aladdin, Abderachman in Raymonda, Benvolio in Kenneth MacMillan's Romeo and Juliet and Lewis Carroll/The White Rabbit in Chrisopher Wheeldon's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. He was promoted to First Soloist in 2021.

About The National Ballet of Japan

The National Ballet of Japan (NBJ), the first resident ballet company in Japan, launched in conjunction with the opening of the New National Theatre Tokyo in 1997.
The NBJ's repertoire is broad in scope, embracing classics such as Swan Lake, The Sleeping Beauty and The Nutcracker; 20th century works by choreographers such as Frederick Ashton, George Balanchine, Roland Petit and Kenneth MacMillan; as well as works by contemporary choreographers such as David Bintley, Nacho Duato and Christopher Wheeldon. The NBJ also commissions world-class choreographers to create original pieces for its repertoire.

Swan Lake - Video