Cast Set For National Ballet Of Japan's GISELLE at The Royal Opera House

At the conclusion of its recent season of Giselle in Tokyo, including a performance attended by His Majesty Emperor Naruhito of Japan, the National Ballet of Japan has announced the casting of Giselle for the company's UK debut at the Royal Opera House on 24–27 July 2025.  London audiences will have an opportunity to see four different casts over the five performances featuring eight Principal dancers of the company.  75 dancers and 40 members of staff will travel to London.

In what promises to be the most important dance event of London's cultural calendar this summer, the national ballet company of Japan, one of the world's great powerhouse ballet nations, will become the first Asian dance company to perform on the main stage of the Royal Opera House in more than 15 years.

The National Ballet of Japan will give five performances of its acclaimed production of Giselle by the company's artistic director Miyako Yoshida, who was the first Japanese ballerina ever to be made a Principal dancer in the history of the Birmingham Royal Ballet (1988–1995) and The Royal Ballet (1995–2010).  She was appointed an Honorary Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) for services to dance in 2007.

Miyako Yoshida, Artistic Director of the National Ballet of Japan said: ‘It brings me great joy to share the talent of our dancers and the elegance of our corps de ballet with audiences at the Royal Opera House in London, the theatre and the city that gave me everything as a dancer. With our production of Giselle, I hope dance lovers will find in our company a familiar blend of natural lyricism and virtuosic brilliance tempered with our own brand of musicality and refinement.'

Kevin O'Hare, Director of The Royal Ballet said: ‘Miyako and I have known each other since we were both Royal Ballet School students and young dancers at Sadlers Wells Royal Ballet.  Her achievement has inspired an entire generation of Japanese dancers who are now represented in the top ranks of most major ballet companies in the world.  She was a treasured Principal dancer with The Royal Ballet and the perfect ambassador for the friendship between Japan and the UK.  We are so delighted that the National Ballet of Japan will be performing at the Royal Opera House this summer.'

The National Ballet of Japan will perform the beloved 19th century classic Giselle in a production by Miyako Yoshida – with staging and additional choreography by British choreographer and former Royal Ballet Principal Character Artist Alastair Marriott. The production features lighting by Rick Fisher and a spectacular set by Dick Bird, providing a backdrop for this evergreen tale of love, betrayal, forgiveness and redemption.

Casting for the five performances is as follows (Giselle, Albrecht, Hilarion, Myrtha):

Thursday 24 July 7:30PM

Yui Yonezawa, Shun Izawa, Masahiro Nakaya, Akari Yoshida

Friday 25 July 7:30PM

Ayako Ono, Yudai Fukuoka, Yoshito Kinoshita, Yui Negishi

Saturday 26 July  2PM

Saho Shibayama, Shogo Hayami, Takuro Watanabe, Suzu Yamamoto

Saturday 26 July  7:30PM

Yui Yonezawa, Shun Izawa, Masahiro Nakaya, Akari Yoshida

Sunday 27 July 2PM

Yuri Kimura, Takafumi Watanabe, Takuro Watanabe, Yui Negishi

First performed in Paris in 1841, Giselle is the ultimate romantic ballet, with choreography by Jean Coralli and Jules Perrot and music by Adolphe Adam.  The peasant girl Giselle discovers the true aristocratic identity of her lover Albrecht – and that he is betrothed to another.  In despair at the revelation, Giselle dies of heartbreak.  Her spirit enters the realm of the Wilis – ghosts of women who died before their wedding day.  All men that come across their path are compelled to dance themselves to death.  As Albrecht verges on meeting with the same fate, Giselle intervenes with her love from beyond the grave, saving Albrecht and releasing her own soul from the Wilis.

Founded in 1997, the National Ballet of Japan is the resident dance company of the New National Theatre in Shinjuku Tokyo and the only state-funded ballet company in Japan.  With 75 fulltime dancers, the National Ballet of Japan performs a wide repertoire including most of the 19th century classic, the masterworks of Frederick Ashton, George Balanchine, Roland Petit and Kenneth Macmillan – as well as contemporary works by Christopher Wheeldon, David Bintley, Nacho Duato and Will Tuckett.  The company made its overseas debut in 2008 at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington DC followed by a season at the Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow in 2009.  Miyako Yoshida has been the Artistic Director of the company since the 2020/21 season.