K-Ballet Company
From humble beginnings in 1999, Tokyo’s K-Ballet Company has grown into a flourishing, critically acclaimed and immensely popular company. In a country where ballet has a growing audience, K-Ballet relies heavily on its star, Tetsuya Kumakawa—the company’s founder, artistic director, principal dancer and choreographer.
Kumakawa studied at The Royal Ballet School in London and was a principal with that company. He draws on the connections he made there (Sir Anthony Dowell, the former Royal Ballet artistic director, is honorary president of K-Ballet) as well as support from corporate sponsors, advertisers and the media to produce full-length classics and the occasional mixed bill. This outpouring of support has also enabled the company to set up its headquarters in a sleek, modern studio complex, situated in the heart of Tokyo.
K-Ballet’s repertoire is rooted in the classical mold “because this was the best way to educate Japanese audiences about ballet,” says Kumakawa. “My dancers are very much classically based, but for the company’s sake I have to sometimes bring in neoclassical and
contemporary ballets like George Balanchine’s Prodigal Son and Twyla Tharp’s Push Comes to Shove.” The 2008 season will feature a new ballet by Kumakawa choreographed to Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony, along with the full-length classic Le Corsaire.
Kumakawa is a media star in Japan, and his engaging charm, which comes across in his public appearances and bravura performances, has dazzled Japanese audiences. His dancers are renowned for their precision footwork, elegant classical lines and keen sense of musicality.
Principal dancer Yuko Arai, now in her fifth season with the company, sheds her outwardly calm demeanor and instantly glows when she talks about the company and Kumakawa. “[In Japan] we barely had a professional ballet company where I could make a living. At K-Ballet, I can make a living purely by dancing,” she says.
Arai trained with the Hamburg Ballet and danced with Tokyo Ballet before joining K-Ballet. “[Kumakawa] pays close attention to music and often says we should play with it, so I try not to dance like a metronome, but try to dance like I’m playing the music,” she says. “It adds a little spice in the air and helps the audience share the moment with us.”
Junior principal Kenta Shimizu, who also trained at The Royal Ballet School and danced with Miami City Ballet before joining K-Ballet last year, says, “I appreciate the opportunity to perform new leading roles in ballets like Frederick Ashton’s Rhapsody and Roland Petit’s Carmen.” Of his new director, Shimizu says, “He’s very precise in rehearsals. He always notices every little thing with the steps, with the music, with the feeling.”
As the company continues to progress, Kumakawa has his sights set on grooming young dancers from the K-Ballet School. “There is a chance for the younger generation to be like the big stars in ballet today,” he says. “Seeing my young dancers becoming big and growing successful—that’s my treasure and my pleasure.”
Beryl Hawkins teaches journalism and dance at Temple University Japan and is a freelance arts journalist based in Tokyo.
