Studio Stories: Reminiscing on Twin Cities Dance with Yuki Tokuda - Season 8, Episode 106

Yuki Tokuda is a ballet dancer, choreographer and teacher, based in the Twin Cities.She is originally from Japan and was trained under Mikiko Dei, Hideo Fukagawa andJun Ishii, internationally recognized dancers, teachers and competition judges. Shemoved to the US in 2000 to continue her training in New York at the Joffrey BalletSchool. Ms. Tokuda has danced professionally with USA Ballet, Peoria Ballet,Metropolitan Ballet and she was the principal dancer at Continental Ballet for 7 years.With diverse training in classical, contemporary, modern and jazz, she is aninternational guest dancer and collaborator with many companies, including JamesSewell Ballet and Minnesota Dance Theatre. While training in New York, Ms. Tokuda’sinstructors included David Howard, John Prinz, Fabrice Herrault, and Michael Vernon. At Steps on Broadway in New York she was one of the first International Visa Program students. She has, also, trained with Boston Ballet and Connecticut Ballet. She has performed many principal roles, most notably in: Le Corsaire, Don Quixote Pas de Deux, Les Sylphides, Pas de Quatre, Agnes de Mille’s Rodeo, Princess Aurora, Lilac Fairy and Princess Florine in The Sleeping Beauty, the Sugar Plum Fairy and Clara in The Nutcracker, Odette and Odile in Swan Lake, Coppelia, A Midsummer Night’s Dream and the title roles in Romeo and Juliet, and Giselle. She has performed at The Walker Art Center, The Ritz Theater, The State Theatre, The Tek Box, The Ted Mann Concert Hall, The O’Shaughnessy, The Pantages Theatre, The Intermedia Arts, The Lab Theatre and Peavey Plaza.Ms. Tokuda is a faculty member at Minnesota Dance Theatre, Ballet Co.Laboratory,Community Movement Collective and a certified STOTT Pilates Instructor. She hastaught many master classes in Japan and the US including at Cathedral Dance Festivaland Interlochen Center for the Arts. Her choreography was chosen for Choreographer’sEvening at The Walker Arts Center and commissioned by Wayzata SymphonyOrchestra, Wooddale Church, Cerulean Fire, Japan America Society of Minnesota,Saint Paul Conservatory for Performing Artists and Threads Dance Project. She is arecipient of Minnesota State Arts Board and St. Louis Park Arts & Culture Grant. She isa co-director with Rie Tanaka of Mirage Performing Arts where their mission isenvisioning, enriching and enhancing both the cultures of Classical Music and Ballet.She is the owner/designer of YukiTard, a custom dancewear company, as well as, theowner/instructor of Tokuda Ballet, a private ballet school. www.yukitokuda.com