Kentaro Shiozawa

KEN SHIOZAWA was born in Japan and raised in Irvine, California. They began their classical dance training at age seven at the Maple Conservatory of Dance, under the artistic direction of Charles Maple. They also received training from Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre's Full-Time Program and summer programs including the Prague Ballet Intensive, the National Choreographer's Initiative, Washington Ballet, Milwaukee Ballet, and Oklahoma City Ballet.

 In 2020, they graduated with a BFA in Dance Performance from Butler University and in 2024, they graduated with a M.S.Ed in Clinical Mental Health Counseling from the University of Wisconsin Superior. Ken has previously worked with Minnesota Ballet and Minnesota Dance Theater and has performed roles such as Puck in Bruce Wells’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream and the Nutcracker in Loyce Houlton’s Nutcracker Fantasy. Ken has also guested for numerous ballet companies across the U.S., where they have performed works by choreographers including Durante Verzola and Darren McIntyre. Ken also teaches and choreographs, with their most recent work being set on Minnesota Ballet in 2023. Ken is very excited to join First State Ballet for their 2024-2025 season!