The
Dancers

Before joining Alberta Ballet for the 2023/24 season, Chizuru trained for two years at Alberta Ballet School. She had a chance to attend the Assemblée International 2023 and had a such a productive time with dancers all around the world. She also had opportunities to dance with Alberta Ballet Company’s productions such as Giselle, the Nutscracker.

One of her memorable roles was Fairy of Joy from Christopher Anderson’s the Sleeping Beauty,  Witches Loughlan Prior's Hansel & Gretel. and Cupid from Don Quixote.

Originating from Tokyo, Japan, this is Rikuto's third season with Alberta Ballet. He trained with Australian Ballet School and European School of Ballet before joining Alberta Ballet as an Apprentice. He's enjoyed performing roles like Karl in The Nutcracker, Fairy Cavalier from The Sleeping Beauty and the Forest ing Der Wolf. He was promoted to a Corps de Ballet dancers for the 2025/26 season.

Jolie Rose Lombardo was born in Tyler, Texas, the Rose Capital of America. She began her passion for dance at the age of four in Atlanta, Georgia. From ages nine to 14, she received private ballet training from Rebecca Metzger, a former soloist with the New York City Ballet. She then joined the International City School of Ballet under the direction of Georne Aucoin before moving to Florida, where she joined the Orlando Ballet School.

During her time at Orlando Ballet, she developed a special relationship with Deirdre Miles Burger. At just 14 years old, Miles Burger coached Jolie to become the youngest finalist at USA IBC as well as a gold medal at the YAGP Finals. This achievement earned her a full scholarship to the John Cranko School in Stuttgart, Germany.

At 17, Jolie performed the principal role in the ballet Glazunov Suite for her graduation and was offered a contract with the Stuttgart Ballet. During her years in the Corps de Ballet in Stuttgart, she enjoyed dancing in beautiful ballets by Cranko, MacMillan, Marcia Haydée, Edward Clug, and Uwe Scholz.

Some of her most memorable roles include Concerto pas de deux by Kenneth MacMillan and a specially created soloist role in IFIMA by Louis Stiens & Shaked Heller as well as Corps roles in remarkable ballets such as Mayerling, Onegin, and The Taming of the Shrew.

She is thrilled to continue her ballet career on the North America continent in the beautiful country of Canada with Alberta Ballet.

Originally from Naples, Italy, Alfonso began his ballet training at home in 2016, at Teatro San Carlo di Napoli just a few steps from Torre Annunziata, his city.

In 2020 Alfonso relocated to Milan, when he trained for several years at La Scala Ballet Academy. He has had the opportunity to perform many beautiful roles including New Sleep duet by William Forsythe and Largo, a neoclassic solo by Matteo Levaggi, performed in Tokyo at New National theatre Tokyo in 2023 and in Dubai at Dubai Opera House in 2024 .

Alfonso appeared on TV in programs filming Venice Carnival in 2023 and Viva La Danza with Roberto Bolle in 2024.  Also in 2024, he graduated from La Scala Ballet Academy, with a graduate diploma in classical and contemporary ballet and joined Alberta Ballet that year.

His favorite roles are Mercutio and Romeo by Romeo and Juliet by Sir Kenneth Macmillan, Blake works and In The Middle Somewhat Elevated by William Forsythe, Alice in Wonderland by Cristopher Weeldon as the Mad Hatter and White Rabbit and Rubis and Serenade by  George Balanchine.

Originally from Naples, Italy, Mirko graduated from Harmony Dance School of Arnaldo Angelini in 2019 and from Choreutic High School "Palizzi" in 2020. In 2023 he joined Teatro dell'Opera in Rome, Teatro Massimo in Palermo (Sicily) and Teatro San Carlo in Naples as Corps de Ballet. In 2024 he has had the opportunity to dance as guest Soloist at Tirana Opera House (Albany) for Peasant pas de deux in Agron Aliaj’s Giselle.

Originally from Fukuoka, Japan, Hinata Takahara is now in her second season with Alberta Ballet. She honed her training at Alberta Ballet School and, in December, was promoted from Apprentice to the Corps de Ballet. Among her favorite roles to date are Klara in The Nutcracker, the Emerald City Couple in The Wizard of Oz, and a Friend in Don Quixote, each of which has been especially meaningful in her artistic journey.

Originally from Taoyuan City, Taiwan, Yi-Min received his professional training at Canada’s National Ballet School. From 2022 to 2025, he was a member of the RBC Apprentice Program with The National Ballet of Canada.

During his time with the company, Yi-Min performed in a number of productions, including MaddAddam by Wayne McGregor, The Nutcracker by James Kudelka, Onegin by John Cranko, Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland by Christopher Wheeldon, Don Quixote staged by Carlos Acosta, and Swan Lake by Karen Kain, Christopher Stowell, and Robert Binet.

He has had the privilege of working with choreographers such as Robert Binet and Alyssa Martin. In 2020, Yi-Min was the recipient of the Peter Dwyer Scholarship, and in 2018 he placed fifth in the Senior A category at the Taiwan Grand Prix.

Yi-Min joins Alberta Ballet for his first season and looks forward to the exciting journey ahead.

Ian, who is from Los Cabos, Mexico,  joined Alberta Ballet for the 2025/26 season as an Apprentice after training with Ballet Power and Alberta Ballet School. Ian is excited to work with different coreographers, dacing different styles and expanding his technical skills.

Born in Los Angeles, California, Lulu Manzur began her dance training at Ballet Conservatory West and at the Colburn School, where she performed works by renowned choreographers including George Balanchine, Jerome Robbins, and Merce Cunningham.

She most recently trained in Pacific Northwest Ballet’s Professional Division during the 2023–2024 and 2024–2025 seasons. While there, she performed with the company in productions such as Balanchine’s The Nutcracker and PNB’s new staging of The Sleeping Beauty. She also danced in works by PNB company members, performed Balanchine’s The Four Temperaments, and rehearsed Crystal Pite’s The Season’s Canon and Emergence.

Notable highlights in her career include performing the role of “Choleric” in The Four Temperaments, dancing in Robbins’s Antique Epigraphs, and taking part in a masterclass performance led by Alonzo King.

Lulu is excited to join Alberta Ballet for the 2025–2026 season and looks forward to continuing her artistic development.