The
Dancers

Alyssa is joining us for her third season with the company as a Corps de Ballet member. Originally from Kitchener Waterloo, ON, she began training in her hometown at Carousel Dance Centre before choosing to move to Calgary to complete the Post Graduate Program at the Alberta Ballet School. During her schooling, she enjoyed performing the ‘Cupid' variation in Don Quixote, and in 2019 was given the opportunity to perform with Alberta Ballet in the role of ‘Young Elizabeth’ in Jean Grand-Maître’s Frankenstein, in which she excelled.

Kurtis originally hails from Ontario, Canada. He began his ballet training at the age of 18 at the Oakville School of Classical Ballet before moving to New York City to complete his ballet training at Ballet Academy East under the direction of Darla Hoover. During his time in New York, Kurtis had the opportunity to perform roles like Prince Desire in Sleeping Beauty (staged by Maina Guilgud) and was the recipient of the David Howard Foundation scholarship before joining Alberta Ballet in 2019. 

Since joining Alberta Ballet, some of Kurt’s favourite roles he has performed are Jester in Christopher Anderson’s Cinderella, Sugar Plum Cavalier in Edmond Stripes, The Nutcracker, the Black Bird in Annabelle Lopez’s Botero and performing in Jean Grand Maitres pop ballet PHI. This will be Kurt’s fifth season with the Alberta Ballet.

Seira is now in her ninth season with Alberta Ballet. Originally from Fukuoka, Japan, she began her dance training at home at the Fukuoka City Kawazoe Ballet Academy, later moving on to study at the Alberta Ballet School in Calgary and the Dutch National Ballet Academy in Amsterdam. Since joining us in 2015, Seira has shared many wonderful performances with our audiences, some of which include Yoomi in Helen Pickett’s Petal, the Fairy of Virtue in Christopher Anderson’s The Sleeping Beauty, and the Boterosutra couple in Annabel Lopez Ochoa’s Botero.

Originally from Ukraine, Yaroslav moved to Calgary at age 11. He received all of his ballet training at the Alberta Ballet School. After working alongside the company in multiple productions as a student, he officially joined Alberta Ballet as an apprentice dancer in 2020. Yaroslav returned as a Corps de Ballet member for the 2023/24 season. Dalis and Sentinels in Jean Grand-Maître's PHI, his first soloist role in Alysa Pires' Skyward, and Boterosutra, Tango, and Soldiers in Annabelle Lopez Ochoa's BOTERO were particularly memorable roles for Yaroslav.

Originally from Melbourne, Australia, Michael began his training at Victorian College Of The Arts Secondary School. He went on to train overseas in Switzerland and the Netherlands. During his training, he has worked with guest choreographers such as Olga Evreinoff, Cedric Ygnace, and Maina Gielgud. Michael first joined the Alberta Ballet as a supplemental dancer for Cinderella in 2022. His most memorable performance with Alberta Ballet is Alysa Pires' Skyward.

Rhys is originally from Houston, Texas, and trained at Vitacca Dance Project before joining the Boston Ballet in 2017 for three seasons under the direction of Peter Stark. He then joined BalletMet as part of their second company for two seasons under the direction of Edwaard Liang, and Ballet Austin as an apprentice for one season under the direction of Stephen Mills. Rhys performed in various company productions while at Boston Ballet, including Mikko Nissinen’s The Nutcracker, Ashton’s Cinderella, Balanchine’s Coppélia, Petipa’s Giselle, and Boston Ballet School’s Next Generation performances. At BalletMet, Rhys performed in productions including BalletMet’s Unlocked, Gerard Charles’s Nutcracker, Liang’s Cinderella, Giselle, and Liang’s newest creation Seasons. During Rhys’ time with Ballet Austin, Rhys performed in Stephen Mills’ Taming of the Shrew, Nutcracker, Light / The Holocaust Humanity Project, Cinderella, and Alexander Anderson’s Desert Rose. Over the summers, Rhys has trained at some of the most prestigious ballet schools including Finnish National Ballet School, The Royal Ballet School, European School of Ballet, San Francisco Ballet School, Pacific Northwest Ballet, and many more.

Originally from Mexico City, Emmanuel began his training at the Escuela Nacional de Danza Clásica y Contemporánea in Mexico. He then completed his training at the English National Ballet School in England. Before joining Alberta Ballet for the 2023/24 season, he danced with Atlanta Ballet’s Second Company. Some of the roles he has found particularly memorable include Pas de Paysant in Giselle, Lez Rondevouz and Raymonda pas de quatre.

Originally from Perth, Australia, Matthew began his ballet training with Samantha Leeman. In 2014 Matthew relocated to Brisbane, Australia where he trained for several years at the Annette Roselli Dance Academy. In 2020 he graduated from the Australian Ballet School with a Graduate Diploma in Classical Ballet.

After graduation, he joined Queensland Ballet as part of the Pre-Professional Program and in 2022 he became a Jette Parker Young Artist with the company. During this time he had the opportunity to perform at The Royal Opera House in London as part of the Next Generation Festival. Matthew first joined Alberta Ballet in the Spring of 2023 as a Supplementary Artist. During his career, he has had several standout roles including Bluebird in Greg Horsman's Sleeping Beauty Act III and White Bird in BOTERO, choreographed by Annabelle Lopez Ochoa.

Leona is originally from Tokyo, Japan where he first started his dance training with Beppu Hikoe at La Prima in Tokyo when he was three years old. He later trained at Ballet du Ciel under Kanako Sakamoto before moving to New York City to study at Ellison Ballet, coached by Edward Ellison and Bat Udval. After graduating in 2022, Leona joined Boston Ballet’s Post Graduate Program and was coached by Joan Boada and Kathleen Mitchell. Leona’s most memorable role is Creature in Boston Ballet’s Sleeping Beauty.