Dancers

Sumi Ichikawa

Born in Columbus, Ohio, SUMI ICHIKAWA began dancing with BalletMet Academy at the age of six. She would later join the BalletMet Trainee Program under the direction of the Academy Director Maria Torija where she had the opportunity to perform in classical and Balanchine repertoire such as Aurora in Sleeping Beauty, Swanilda in Coppelia, and Second Movement Principal in George Balanchine’s Western Symphony. While in the Trainee Program, Sumi also performed company roles with BalletMet. Those include Gerard Charles’s The Nutcracker, Edwaard Liang’s Giselle, Cinderella, ALICE, and Twisted 3.

After three years of dancing in the BalletMet Trainee Program, Sumi was offered a contract for BalletMet 2 at the age of eighteen. While Sumi was in BalletMet 2, she was able to perform outreach at different schools around Ohio. She also performed in many different works such as David Nixon’s Dracula, Edwaard Liang’s Murmurations, Swan Lake, Tributary, and Dorothy and The Prince of Oz. Sumi was also selected to be a part of the 2023 USA International Ballet Competition (USAIBC) held in Jackson, Mississippi. She performed a Pas de Deux from Satanella and from Edwaard Liang’s Symphonic Dances. Sumi was one out of fourteen dancers who made it to the second round where she would be announced a semi finalist. Sumi is excited to join the company for the 2023/24 season.