The Pasona world ballet tent theater, built next to the SEIKAIHA Naminoritei on Awaji Island, is a new facility that hosts ballet performances by ballet dancers who were forced to flee their homes in Ukraine, as well as a ballet school and workshops. It is a rare opportunity to experience ballet up close and personal with ballet dancers who were active in the real world of ballet.
▲Left: Image of the completed building (interior view)
Right: Pasona Heartful Artist employees' drawings are used on the exterior.
Awajishima World Ballet: What is the Awaji Island Ukraine Support Project?
We support the relocation of ballet dancers who fled to Awaji Island, Japan due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, and create an environment where others can learn first-class dance from ballet dancers who are active in the world. We hold ballet schools, workshops, and performance events on Awaji Island, an island of art.
Introduction of Ballet Dancers Who Moved from Ukraine to Awaji Island
Margaryta Dushakova
She laid the foundation of her ballet in the Vaganova method. She graduated as a professional ballet dancer from the National School of Choreography in Kyiv (1992) and received her choreographic diploma from the National Pedagogical University. She has 25 years of experience as a ballet dancer and has performed several times as a soloist in Europe and the United States. She has performed in Japan for 4 years in Tokyo and Nagoya. She worked as a classical ballet teacher at the National Ballet School of Kyiv for 3 years.
Svetlana Shlikhter
She was a professional ballet dancer at the Serge Lifar Dance Academy in Kyiv, and during her studies she performed as a soloist at the National Theater in Kyiv and participated in several classical and modern dance competitions. After graduation, she worked as a ballet dancer at the National Opera in Lviv for two years.
Nelya Ivanova
She completed her education as a ballet dancer at the Odessa University of Arts named after K.F. Dankevich. After graduating from the university, she worked as a dancer for two years at the Lviv State Opera. She performed in such ballet masterpieces as The Nutcracker (solo part), Don Quixote, Giselle, Swan Lake, and Esmeralda.
Kateryna Yevtikova
Born in Kyiv, Ukraine. After graduating from the Kyiv State Ballet School, she worked as a ballerina at the National Cultural Center, Cairo Opera House, etc. She taught ballet education for children and young dancers at the Kyiv Opera Ballet Company, where she was a teacher from 2004 to 2017, then taught at a private school. She is also active as a choreographer in addition to teaching at the Kyiv National Ballet Academy.
At the ballet school we have opened, students can learn directly from world-class ballet dancers (ballerinas).
