Rio Mitani

三谷梨央のウィーンの幼少時代を描く
​「ウィーンのバレエ物語」

Rio Mitani  
三谷 梨央

神戸生まれ、1 才からウィーンに育つ。ウィーン国立バレエ学校を経てウィーン・コンセルバトリウム・バレエ科の公認バレエ 指導免許を取得。17才でオーストリア・バレエ劇場に入団し、まもなくソリストの役を与えられる。ウラジミール・ツカノフ、 ビルジニヤ・ツカノワ両氏に師事。1999年、視野を広めるべくアラスカへ渡り、ジュノー・ダンス・アンリミテッドの芸術監督を引き受ける。同時にニューヨーク、シアトル、ニュージャージー、アラスカ、オーストリア、フランスの各地でジゼル、 くるみ割り人形、ゼンツァーノの花祭り、レ・シルフィードの主役でゲスト出演。ニューヨークのアメリカン・バレエ・シアター にてダイアナ・カティエール氏に学ぶ。2001年、フュージョン・ダンス・カンパニーのソリストとしてシアトルへ招聘、パシフィック・ノースウェスト・バレエの福祉プログラムの教師を務めたのち、ニュージャージーのアトランティック・コンテ ンポラリー・バレエ劇場のソリスト兼バレエマスターに就任。 2002年、故国日本に戻り、2004年、夫クリスティアン・マルティーヌと共にABC-TOKYOバレエ団を設立。 2010年8月、第4回 青少年のためのバレエ・コンクール「ザ・バレコン東京」、2019年、第３回「国際バレエアワード」コンクールを始め数々の優秀指導者賞を受賞。 
2023年にニューヨーク開催​バレンティーナ・コズロワ国際バレエコンクール、東京開催Pacific International Ballet Competitionの審査員を務める。



 
Rio is Co-Founder and Artistic Director of ABC-TOKYO Ballet Co. and ABS-TOKYO (Austrian Ballet School), where together with her husband Christian Martinu she also serves as the Main Teacher.
 
Rio was born in Kobe, Japan but grew up in Vienna, Austria since the age of 1.
She studied at the Vienna Opera Ballet School and the Vienna Conservatory under the direction of Prof. Karl Musil and Prof. Evelyn Teri, and graduated at 17 with a perfect score.
 
She joined the Austrian Ballet Theatre in Vienna and there deepened her studies with Virginia Stankiewiz and Vladimir Tsukanov, student of teaching legend Nicolai Tarasov, who have influenced Rio profoundly. 
 
To broaden her horizons, she followed a calling as ballet school director to Juneau, Alaska in 1999. From there Rio was invited to perform as guest soloist in dance festivals in Seattle, New York, New Jersey, Vienna and France, dancing leading roles in Giselle, Nutcracker, Flowerfest in Genzano, Les Sylphides and many more.
 
Rio also danced with Atlantic Contemporary Ballet Theater, Fusion Dance Company and served on the Faculty of Pacific Northwest Ballet’s Outreach Program. 
 
In 2002 Rio decided to return to her roots in Japan for the first time, and in 2004 she and her husband Christian Martinu founded the ABC-TOKYO Ballet Co. with which she performed all over the world including tours to Australia, Austria, Singapore, Malaysia, the World Expo, the AIDS Gala with Lynne Charles, numerous TV appearances and at the Vienna Opera Ball in Tokyo for Prince Akishinonomiya of Japan. 
 
Rio has developed her own distinct style of choreography called “JAPANISM”, fusing Classical Ballet with different entertainment Dance Styles, to tell Japanese stories in a new fashion. ABC-TOKYO’s performances were featured on many stages and on TV and funded by the Japanese Ministry of Arts. With her Dance Number “Japanism”, ABC-TOKYO was awarded First Prize at the European Ballet Grand Prix in 2020.
 
In 2009 Rio and her husband founded the Austrian Ballet School-Tokyo (ABS) , the first Professional Ballet Academy in Japan offering Full Scholarships, which went to become one of the leading ballet schools in the country, sending off its students to premiere schools such as the Royal Ballet School, Vienna Opera Ballet School, Bolshoi Ballet School, School of American Ballet, Paris Opera Ballet School as well as renowned companies such as the English National Ballet, National Ballet of Canada, Ballets de Monte Carlo, Universal Ballet and many others where ABS students have been promoted to the leading ranks soon after joining.
 
Rio has been since awarded with numerous Awards for Outstanding Teachers and was invited to judge Ballet Competitions on national and international panels, including the Valentina Kozlova International Ballet Competition in New York City and the Pacific International Ballet Competition in Tokyo in 2023.
 
Rio has developed and teaches a method she calls “Vaganova for Japanese”, which artistically and methodically is based on the famous Vaganova method, but takes into account the different physical conditions and limitations of the individual students. She wants to help dancers to overcome their physical weaknesses, so they learn to understand their own bodies better to achieve technical excellence while at the same time dancing with grace and expression.
 
Believing that the Art of Teaching can only be passed on from one teacher to another, in 2020 Rio launched a pedagogy program for the next generation of young teachers, determined to pass on Mr. Tsukanov’s legacy of exquisite methodology paired with burning passion and profound belief in the students’ potential. 
 
Rio is a follower of Christ and was gifted with two beautiful children, who are her biggest joy in life.



ENDORSEMENTS FOR RIO MITANI AND CHRISTIAN MARTINU

"They are wonderful people, good technicians with extensive experience in both contemporary and classical works; they are extremely hard working and disciplined in class."
Diana Cartier, American Ballet Theatre, New York

"Christian and Rio have a wealth of knowledge to give all of us. There are few, if any, in the US who can boast their repertoire of teaching abilities." 
Virginia L Niekrasz-Laurent, Director of Redwood Concert Ballet, Redwood, California

Artistic Director
January 2000 to June 2001: Juneau Dance Unlimited, Juneau, Alaska, USA
1998 to present: Austrian Ballet Company, Vienna, Austria
2004 to present: ABC-Tokyo Ballet Co., Tokyo, Japan

Trained at
Vienna State Opera Ballet School, Graduate of the Conservatory of Vienna
Vladimir Tsukanov, Virginia Stankiewiz, Bolshoi/Vaganova
Diana Cartier, American Ballet Theater
Phyllis Papa, Atlantic Contemporary Ballet Theatre

Prizes
​For having prepared Asami Koizumi, as well as Towako Mizukami for the first prize in a competition, Rio received Outstanding Teacher's awards as outstanding ballet mistress. 
They were followed by 2 Best Teacher Awards for coaching Taro Yamada and Ruito Takabatake in 2022.
Rio's Original Choreography "JAPANISM" was awarded 1st Prize at the European Ballet Grand Prix in Vienna 2020

Choreographies

• Prima la Musica, for Austrian public TV (ORF)
• Urashima Taro, A Japanese Fairytale, Akzent Theater, Vienna
• Mozart's Pour le Roi, Jeunesse Austria Tour
• Carmen, Jeunesse Austria Tour
• Johann Strauß Memories, Vienna Festival Weeks
• Nostalgies, Kinderklang, Vienna with artists of the Vienna Philharmonic
• Roses from the South, ACBT, New Jersey
• Etudes, Redwood Concert Ballet, CA
• The Conductor, Festival Off, Avignon, France, Union Square Dance Festival, NYC
• For God, Hokkaido, Japan
• Romeo & Juliet, JDHS, Juneau
• Yuki Onna - The Snow Princess, Japan, Australia, Europe
• Urashima Taro - A fisher's man tale, Japan, Australia
• The Wonderful World of Dance, Japan
• Umbrellas of Kyoto, premiere in 2012
• Messiah - The life of Jesus Christ
• The Dream, premiere February 2017
• Les Miserables, 2018
• From the Ashes, 2019
• Couronne, 2020
• Romeo and Juliet, 2022

Professional References
"In working with PNB, Rio helped do the important and valuable work of enriching public schools and the lives of students and teachers with ballet, dance, and the arts." 
Stephanie Scherpf, Director of Outreach and Education, Pacific Northwest Ballet, 2002

"Miss Mitani and Mr. Martinu have proven to be such a gift to the teaching profession." 
Virginia L Niekrasz-Laurent, Director of Redwood Concert Ballet, Redwood, CA., 2002

"Rio and Christian's classes are well organized and their corrections are very positive. I feel privileged to have them on the faculty." 
Phyllis Papa, Director, Atlantic Contemporary Ballet Theatre, New Jersey, 2001

"We enjoyed the positive energy, professional work ethic, and flexibility in all situations." 
Alice Bassler Sullivan, Director, Alaska Dance Theatre, 2001

"Your performance as a dancer convinced the public, by grace and ease, and by an especially beautiful musical interpretation." 
Dr. Werner Pelinka, Director, Kinderklang Vienna, 1999

"Miss Rio Mitani is extremely brilliant, constantly diligent in her work, and outstandingly talented - a true artist in a wide sense." 
Mariko Nicol, Composer, Concert pianist, Painter, Tokyo 1999

"Her discipline, her technical ability, and her vision make her an extraordinary artist. She is truly dedicated." 
Susana B. Williams, Director, Thought-Forms Productions 2000

"... a wonderful ambassador for our department." 
Prof. Karl Musil, Director, Conservatory Vienna, 1997

"I have been extremely pleased by her level of professionalism and her commitment to her art and her students, always willing to "go that extra mile" to get things "just right." 
William Bell, Vienna International School, 1999
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"I appreciate her ability, as a dancer with profound technique, to create stage characters within a wide range of personalities." 
Walter Bartussek, Director, The Mime Center, Vienna, 1999