Tamiyo Kusakari

Tamiyo Kusakari is a Tokyo-born Japanese actress and former ballerina. While still an active ballerina, she starred in Masayuki Suo’s Shall We Dance? (1996), winning the Japan Academy Film Prize for Best Actress and Newcomer of the Year. After concluding her ballet career in 2009, she began acting in earnest across stage, film, and television, including the hit series Doctor X: Surgeon Michiko Daimon. She later received Japan Academy Film Prize recognition as Excellent Actress in a Leading Role for Suo’s A Terminal Trust (2012). She also brings her ballet expertise to screen production, serving as ballet supervisor and coach for Ballet Danshi!.