Yuki Tokuda is a ballet dancer, choreographer and teacher, based in the Twin Cities. She is originally from Japan and was trained under Mikiko Dei, Hideo Fukagawa and Jun Ishii, internationally recognized dancers, teachers and competition judges. She moved to the US in 2000 to continue her training in New York at the Joffrey Ballet School. Ms. Tokuda has danced professionally with USA Ballet, Peoria Ballet, Metropolitan Ballet and she was the principal dancer at Continental Ballet for 7 years. With diverse training in classical, contemporary, modern and jazz, she is an international guest dancer and collaborator with many companies, including James Sewell Ballet and Minnesota Dance Theatre. While training in New York, Ms. Tokuda’s instructors included David Howard, John Prinz, Fabrice Herrault, and Michael Vernon. At Steps on Broadway in New York she was one of the first International Visa Program students. She has, also, trained with Boston Ballet and Connecticut Ballet. She has performed many principal roles, most notably in: Le Corsaire, Don Quixote Pas de Deux, Les Sylphides, Pas de Quatre, Agnes de Mille’s Rodeo, Princess Aurora, Lilac Fairy and Princess Florine in The Sleeping Beauty, the Sugar Plum Fairy and Clara in The Nutcracker, Odette and Odile in Swan Lake, Coppelia, A Midsummer Night’s Dream and the title roles in Romeo and Juliet, and Giselle. She has performed at The Walker Art Center, The Ritz Theater, The State Theatre, The Tek Box, The Ted Mann Concert Hall, The O’Shaughnessy, The Pantages Theatre, The Intermedia Arts, The Lab Theatre and Peavey Plaza.
Ms. Tokuda is a faculty member at University of Minnesota, James Sewell Ballet, Ballet Co.Laboratory, Community Movement Collective, Center Stage Dance Studio and a certified STOTT Pilates Instructor. She has taught many master classes in Japan and the US including at Minnesota Dance Theatre, Cathedral Dance Festival, Interlochen Center for the Arts and the University of Wisconsin - Stevens Point.
Her choreography was chosen for Choreographer’s Evening at The Walker Arts Center and commissioned by Macalester College, Wayzata Symphony Orchestra, Wooddale Church, Cerulean Fire, Japan America Society of Minnesota, Saint Paul Conservatory for Performing Artists and Threads Dance Project. She is a recipient of McKnight Dancer Fellow (2023), Minnesota State Arts Board (2018, 2021, 2022, 2023 and 2024) and St. Louis Park Arts & Culture Grant. She is a co-director with Rie Tanaka of MIRAGE Performing Arts where their mission is envisioning, enriching and enhancing both the cultures of Classical Music and Ballet.
She is the owner/designer of YukiTard, a custom dancewear company, as well as, the director of Tokuda Ballet.
滋賀県長浜市出身。出井幹子、深川秀夫、石井潤に師事。2001年、ニューヨーク州のジョフリー・バレエ・スクールでバレエを学ぶため渡米。その後ステップスのインターナショナルスチューデントとしてデービッドハワード、ジョンプリンス、マイケルバーノンに師事。卒業後、アメリカUSAバレエ、ペオリアバレエでソリストとして踊る。2009年からコンチネンタルバレエ団とプリンシパル契約し、くるみ割り人形、ジゼル、白鳥の湖、シンデレラ、コッペリア、眠れる森の美女、ドンキホーテ全ての作品で主役を踊る。２０１６年からフリーとなりメトロポリタンバレエ団、ジェームススウェルバレエ、バレエミネソタ、ミネソタダンスシアターのゲストとして踊る。また振付家としてミネソタ州芸術委員会の助成金を3度受賞、ウェイサタ交響楽団、JASMミネソタ日米協会、ウォーカー・アーツ・センターなどで 委託振付師、その他助成金を多数受賞。ミュージシャン、オーケストラなどとコラボレーションしたりと、芸術家として積極的に活動、評価される。ミネソタ・ダンス・シアター、カテドラル・ダンス・フェスティバル、インターロッケン芸術センターなどで講師。ストットピラティス教師の資格も持ち解剖学や正しい体の使い方の視点からプライベート、マスタークラスなどで指導している。これまでに出井幹子、故深川秀夫、故石井潤、デービッド・ハワー ド、ジョン・プリンス、マイケル・バーノンの各氏に師事。