Anna Ishii
Principal Dancer · Assistant Artistic Director
Ballet Mistress · Choreographer
Kanagawa, Japan
Anna Ishii is a Japanese ballet artist, choreographer, teacher, and founding member of Ballet de Barcelona. Alongside her career as a Principal Dancer, she has developed an increasingly important role in the artistic and educational work of the company. As Assistant Artistic Director, she works closely with the artistic leadership in the development of the company’s repertoire, productions, and dancers, contributing her experience and perspective to the artistic direction of Ballet de Barcelona.
As Ballet Mistress and répétitrice, Anna works closely with the dancers throughout the rehearsal process, transmitting the technical, stylistic, and artistic demands of the repertoire. Her experience as a performer allows her to approach this work with a detailed understanding of both classical tradition and the needs of today’s dancers.
Her work as a choreographer includes staging Act II of Swan Lake for Ballet de Barcelona, as well as contributing to the creation of Perspectives, developed in collaboration with Chase Johnsey and other members of the company. These projects reflect her interest in combining the foundations of classical ballet with contemporary perspectives and new approaches to movement.
Anna’s choreographic work also extends to the Junior Ballet de Barcelona, where she has created Peter and the Wolf and Pere i el Llop. Through these productions, she works with young dancers on theatricality, musicality, characterisation, and stage presence while bringing ballet to younger audiences.
Through her combined roles as Assistant Artistic Director, Ballet Mistress, répétitrice, choreographer, and teacher, Anna contributes to the artistic development of Ballet de Barcelona across different generations of dancers. Her work connects the company’s professional repertoire with the development of young artists, while continuing to support the growth and evolution of the company.