ASAMI MAKI BALLET TOKYO

ASAMI MAKI BALLET TOKYO

Launched by the late Akiko Tachibana and her daughter Asami Maki in 1956, Asami Maki Ballet Tokyo is a leading ballet company of Japan. Its original organization had been established as Tachibana Ballet Institute in 1933. From the very first years on, under the direction of Asami Maki, and Kyozo Mitani since 1994, AMBT has given numerous performances, some of which have been staged with the sponsorship of Agency for Cultural Affairs of Japan.

The company's wide-ranging repertoire includes all the major full-length classics, such as Swan Lake, The Sleeping Beauty and Nutcracker, George Balanchine's Serenade, Rubies and Apollo, Frederick Ashton's La Fille mal gardée, and several acclaimed masterpieces choreographed by Roland Petit, such as Notre-Dame de Paris, Le jeune homme et la mort, Pink Floyd Ballet and Duke Ellington Ballet, as well as Coming Together, created by Nacho Duato. The company has also performed full-length works based on Japanese history, such as Asuka Monogatari and Hokuto, choreographed by Akiko Tachibana and Asami Maki respectively.

AMBT will:
- give performances of the highest quality
- develop a repertoire from major classics to commissioned works
- encourage Japanese audience to experience the magic of ballet
- collaborate with various artists of international renown

With performances of the high calibre, many of the dancers have appeared as guest artists in domestic and overseas festivals as well as other companies' performances. AMBT has enjoyed a high reputation as a major artistic force in the art scene of Japan today.






		Tachibana Akiko, 1907-1970 Tachibana Akiko was born in the city of Utsunomiya, lying approximately 100km north to Tokyo. She was trained as school teacher before she began taking lessons of classical ballet under the tutelege of Eliana Pavlova. It was not long before she started performing in the productions of Eliana Pavlova Ballet throughout Japan, as well as in Taiwan, Korea and China. She left the company in 1932 and established Tachibana Ballet Institute next year. Tachibana choreographed and performed her own works for the institute, and staged them regularly both in Japan and abroad. Most of her works are the compositions with the classical ballet style, choreographed to the music of Beethoven, Schubert, Chopin, Brahms, Grieg as well as Bizet, which all had the notable success. She changed the name of the institute to Asami Maki Ballet in 1956 after the name of her daughter. Heading Asami Maki Ballet with her daughter, Tachibana organized performances of major classical repertoire including Nutcracker, Don Quixote, CoppÆlia, La Sylphide and Giselle. Some of the productions had the guest appearances from abroad for the leading roles, such as Nadezhda Pavlova, Alexandra Danilova, Frederic Franklin, and Igor Schwezoff, among others. Not only popular classics, Tachibana created the full-lenghth works for the company based on history and folk tales of Japan, such as Asuka Monogatari (1957), Kakubei-Jishi (1963), and Sengoku-Jidai (1964). Along with regular performances, Tachibana showed great passion for training children in classical ballet in the Institute, whose teaching section changed its name to Tachibana Akiko Ballet School in 1952, one of the oldest of its kind in Japan. Taking the lead in the school, she trained plenty of promissing chiledren and young people. Excellent dancers have appeared one after another from the school, such as Yoko Morishita, Noriko Ohara OBE, Tamiyo Kusakari, Naoya Kojima, and Tomohiko Henmi to name only a few. Throughout her artistic career, Akiko Tachibana had made a tremendous contribution to make cultural heritage of Japan much more abundant and diverse. The Japanese govornment gave due credit to her significant achievement for several occasions, including the Arts Encouragement Prize for Artists of Minister of Education(1960), the Art Festival Encouragement Prize of Minister of Education(1962, ê63 and ê67), the Medal with Purple Ribbon(1967), and the Order of the Precious Crown(1970).

Asami Maki is an only daughter of Tachibana Akiko, one of the pioneers of Japanese ballet. Ms. Maki began her early ballet training in Tokyo with her mother and made her stage debut when she was 4 years old. At twenty she went to USA in order to study under Alexandra Danilova and Igor Schwezoff. After coming back to Japan, Ms. Maki founded Asami Maki Ballet Tokyo in 1956 with Ms. Tachibana, and danced leading roles in major full-length classics such as Swan Lake, Giselle, Coppelia and Nutcracker. She has also created numerous works for AMBT such as Sea, L’amour blanc, Firebird, and Mandala Symphony, which all have had critical acclaim. In 1971, carrying out the intention of her mother, Ms. Maki finished her performing career and assumed the president of AMBT as well as the principal of Akiko Tachibana Ballet School. This school was founded in 1950 and now regarded as the center of classical ballet training in Japan. Moreover, Ms. Maki was appointed Artistic Director for Ballet & Dance Division of New National Theatre Tokyo in July 1999.
Ms. Maki has participated as a judge for major ballet competitions including Prix de Lausanne, New York International Ballet Competition, Tokyo Shinbun National Ballet Competition, and Japan International Ballet & Modern Dance Competition. She has received numerous honorable awards such as Tachibana Akiko Award (1981), Nimura Award (1984), Minister of Education Award for Arts, Tokyo Shinbun Performing Arts Award, Dance Critics Association Award (1987), and Tachibana Akiko Special Award (1991). In November 1996, Ms. Maki was decorated with Medal with Purple Ribbon by Japanense government for her achievement as a choreographer.
In 2004, she was conferred Grade de Chevalier dans l'ordre des Arts des Lettres by Minister of Culture of the Republic of France.

Mitani Kyozo received his ballet training in his hometown in Ehime, Japan, then in Tokyo, and went on studying at The Académie de Danse Classique Princesse Grace in Monaco. He joined AMBT in 1979 after coming back to Japan.
As a principal dancer with AMBT, Mitani danced leading roles in all of the major full-length classics, including Swan Lake, The Sleeping Beauty, Nutcracker, Don Quixote, Raymonda, Coppélia, La Bayadère, The Tales of Hoffmann, La Sylphide and Giselle among others. During his performing career, Mr. Mitani gave numerous performances throughout the world, including UK, France, Russia, Italy, Israel and Portugal.
In 1994 Mr. Mitani was appointed Artistic Director of AMBT. His choreographic credits include Persona(1993), Pendule(1995), Gershwin’s Dream(1997), Accident(1998), Variation pour quatre(2000), which have been performed for « Danse vingt et un », a mixed-program for AMBT performances receiving particular acclaim. Also, Mr Mitani choreographed the full-length classic for the first time The Nutcracker(2001) for AMBT, which has received critical acclaim.
Mr. Mitani has received honorable awards for contributions to the ballet scene of Japan, including the Arts Encouragement Prize for New Artists of the Ministry of Education, Science, Sports and Culture (1986), the Tachibana Akiko Award (1987), and Nimura Dance Award (1999).
Mr. Mitani has participated as a judge for domestic and international ballet competitions in Tokyo, Seoul, Varna and Permi among others.

Akiko Tachibana Memorial Foundation
Akiko Tachibana Memorial Foundation was established in 1975 to fulfill a will of Ms. Tachibana to develop and provide an excellent training in ballet and to promote the art of classical ballet in Japan. Through various forerunning activities stated below, the Foundation aspires to introduce the finest of classical ballet to Japanese society and to incorporate it into an integral part of opulent cultural heritage of this country.
Akiko Tachibana Memorial Foundation will:

	- - - - - -	Preside over annual commendation of Akiko Tachibana Award for excellence in performing and staging ballet Provide annual scholarship to young and talented dancers Invite internationally renowned choreographers, dancers and teachers Train gifted young students who aspire to become excellent dancers in Japan Junior Ballet Give regular performances of ballet of a high standard by Asami Maki Ballet Tokyo and Japan Ballet Festival Promote the art of ballet through creating the archive and publishing the biannual journal Ballet Esquire

Tachibana Ballet School
Ms. Tachibana Akiko, one of the pioneers of classical ballet in Japan, founded Tachibana Ballet Institute in 1933. She reorganized the institute into Tachibana Ballet School in 1950, one of the first educational organizations specializing in classical ballet in Japan. Tachibana Ballet School has trained and produced a great number of professional ballet dancers, many of them has joined domestic or foreign ballet companies after graduating the school. Also, the graduates have founded affiliated ballet studios all over Japan. Led by Maki Asami since 1971 as Director, Tachibana Akiko Ballet School has greatly contributed to the ballet scene in this country.

Overseas performances
1973 Aberdeen International Youth Festival (UK) 1978 Tour (Italy, France, Israel, UK, Hong Kong) 1984 Hong Kong Youth International Dance Festival 1985 Aberdeen International Youth Festival (UK) 1990 Former USSR (Kirov Theater in St.Petersberg, Danchenco Theater in Moscow) 2005 Spain, Barcelone(Teatre Tivoli) France, -------Paris(Théâtre des Champs-Elysées) ; Biarritz(Au Temps d'Aimer)


	ASAMI MAKI BALLET TOKYO 6-27-13,NAKANO,NAKANO-KU,TOKYO,164-0001,JAPAN 5F 5-4-40,MINAMIAOYAMA,MINATO-KU,TOKYO,107-0062,JAPAN 2-14-15,TOMIGAYA,SHIBUYA-KU,TOKYO,151-0063,JAPAN

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