"I tried other things but it wasn't fun except for ballet", San Francisco Ballet's Principal Dancer Misa Kuranaga

Misa Kuranaga, a principal dancer with San Francisco Ballet. Ms Kuranaga was born and raised in Osaka, Japan Source: Rachel Neville Photography

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Misa Kuranaga who was born and raised in Osaka, Japan will perform at the inaugural Sydney International Ballet Gala this weekend. She was the first Asian principal dancer with Boston Ballet and joined San Francisco Ballet in 2019.

Misa Kuranaga (right), a principal dancer with San Francisco Ballet, was born and raised in Osaka, Japan. Source: Misa Kuranaga

Misa Kuranaga spent 16 years with Boston Ballet, including 10 years as their principal dancer. A principal dancer or a principal is the highest rank a dancer can reach in a professional ballet company. Ms Kuranaga was the first Asian principal with Boston Ballet.

When Ms Kuranaga started her career in the US, she was often told to dance bigger as her height is only 156 cm. She missed out on some opportunities because of her height. Ms Kuranaga started her own trial-and-error process to investigate how she can dance "bigger".

Ms Kuranaga joined San Francisco Ballet in 2019 as a principal dancer. San Francisco Ballet is the ballet company Ms Kuranaga spent a year as an apprentice at, before joining Boston Ballet. She got the apprenticeship after winning a prize at the Prix de Lausanne in 2001.

Ms Kuranaga is in Sydney for Sydney International Ballet Gala this weekend. In the audio, Ms Kuranaga shares her routine during summer, when she has to travel around the world as a guest dancer, to keep her body and mind in good condition. She also tells us how much she enjoy dancing ballet.