When Tetsuya Kumakawa left The Royal Ballet five years ago at the age of 26, most people said it was too early for the Ferrari-driving superstar to leave his position as a principal dancer with the legendary company he joined in 1989. That was probably because most people didn't know what Kumakawa himself obviously knew, or certainly hoped: that for all his fame and fortune in London, he had not yet peaked, but was instead making a career leap every bit as bold and breathtaking as those he performs on stage.
With his new "Swan Lake," playing at the Bunkamura in Tokyo before traveling to locations around Japan, it is clear beyond all doubt that this 31-year-old from Hokkaido is progressing ever onward and upward through the ballet world.
A year after leaving London, Kumakawa founded K-Ballet Company in Tokyo. There, as artistic director, he set to closing the gap between Japan and the best of the ballet world by giving young Japanese dancers the chance to work with the international dancers and production staffers he brought to the company.