SHIBAYAMA SahoPrincipal

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 and Principal in 2023.

SHIBAYAMA Saho

MAKI Asami's production: Raymonda (Raymonda)

Repertoire with NBJ includes

  • Wayne EAGLING’s productions: The Sleeping Beauty (Princess Florina, Emerald), The Nutcracker and the Mouse King (Clara, Louise / Butterfly)
  • Alexei FADEYECHEV's production: Don Quixote (Kitri, Street Dancer)
  • MAKI Asami's productions: Raymonda (title role), La Bayadère (Nikiya)
  • YOSHIDA Miyako's production: Giselle (title role)
  • Peter WRIGHT’s production: Swan Lake (Odette / Odile)
  • Frederick ASHTON:Cinderella (title role, Fairy Spring, Fairy Autumn), The Dream (Titania)
  • KAIKAWA Tetsuo: Story of a Little Mermaid (title role)
  • Peter DARRELL: Tales of Hoffmann (Olympia,Giulietta)
  • Nacho DUATO: Duende
  • David DAWSON: A Million Kisses to my Skin
  • George BALANCHINE: Symphony in C (1st Movement Principal), Serenade, Theme and Variations (Principal)
  • David BINTLEY: Aladdin (Princess Badr al-Budur,Diamond), 'Still Life' at the Penguin Café (Now Nothing)
  • Mikhail FOKINE: Petrouchka
  • Roland PETIT: Coppélia (Swanilda)
  • Kenneth MACMILLAN: Manon (Courtesans), Romeo and Juliet (Juliet's friends)
  • MORIYAMA Kaiji: RYUUGUU - The Turtle Princess (title role)