ONO AyakoPrincipal Dancers

ONO Ayako was born in New York. She trained at Noriko Kobayashi Ballet Academy, Studio Ballet Colette Armand and New National Theatre Ballet School. She was the Gold medalist at the Genée International Ballet Competition in 2004, and joined the National Ballet of Japan as Soloist in 2007. She made her debut as leading role in David BINTLEY's Aladdin in 2008 and was promoted to Principal in 2011.She was awarded both Minister of Education Award for New Artists and Dance Critics Society of Japan's New Comer Award in 2011 and won Chieko Hattori Ballet Prize in 2014. She created the leading role in David BINTLEY's The Prince of the Pagodas, and also appeared as guest dancer for Birmingham Royal Ballet in 2013 and 2014 to perform in the U.K. premiere of Aladdin and The Prince of the Pagodas. She was awarded Akiko Tachibana Award in 2016 and Minister of Education Award for Fine Arts in 2019.

ONO Ayako

MAKI Asami's productions: Swan Lake (Odette)

Repertoire with NBJ includes

  • Wayne EAGLING's productions: The Sleeping Beauty (Princess Aurora, Princess Florine), The Nutcracker and the Mouse King (Clara)
  • Alexei FADEYECHEV's production: Don Quixote (Kitri)
  • MAKI Asami's productions: Swan Lake (Odette/Odile), The Nutcracker (Sugar Plum Fairy), La Bayadère (Nikiya)
  • Konstantin SERGEYEV's production: Giselle (title role)
  • Frederick ASHTON: Cinderella (title role)
  • George BALANCHINE: Symphony in C (2nd Movement Principal), Concerto Barocco (Principal), Apollo (Terpsichore), Symphony in Three Movements (2nd Principal couple), Theme and Variations (Principal), Tarantella
  • David BINTLEY: Aladdin (Princess Badr al-Budur), Carmina Burana (Fortuna), Galanteries, 'Still Life' at the Penguin Café (Rainforest Family), The Prince of the Pagodas (Princess Bell Sakura), Sylvia (title role), Take Five (Two Step), E=mc² (Mass), Faster (Fighters)
  • August BOURNONVILLE: La Sylphide (title role)
  • Peter DARRELL: Tales of Hoffmann (Antonia)
  • Nacho DUATO: Por vos Muero
  • Mikhail FOKINE: The Firebird (title role), Les Sylphides
  • Jessica LANG: Escaping the Weight of Darkness
  • Kenneth MACMILLAN: Manon (title role), Romeo and Juliet (title role)
  • OGURA Sachiko: Snow White (title role), Cinderella (title role)
  • Roland PETIT: Coppélia (Swanilda), La Chauve-souris (Bella)
  • Twyla THARP: Push comes to shove, In the Upper Room
  • Hans VAN MANEN: Grosse Fuge
  • Christopher WHEELDON: Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland (title role)