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Photo: Yumiko Inoue.
Originally from Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan, Atau Watanabe began her ballet training under the guidance of Shizuko Tachibana and Yoko Tanaka. In 2003, Watanabe attended the American Ballet Theatre Summer Intensive program. In 2010, she won first place and the Special Jury Prize at the Prix Carpeaux International Ballet Competition in France.
In 2011, Watanabe advanced to the New York Finals of the Youth America Grand Prix and received a full scholarship to The Australian Ballet School. In 2014, she was awarded a scholarship from the Australia-Japan Foundation. After graduating from The Australian Ballet School, Watanabe joined Queensland Ballet as a Young Artist in 2015.
In 2017, Watanabe joined The National Ballet of Japan as a soloist. Her repertoire included Gamzatti in La Bayadère, Carabosse in The Sleeping Beauty, Summer Fairy in Cinderella, Mercedes in Don Quixote, Big Swan in Swan Lake, Arabian in The Nutcracker, Hermia in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Rosaline in Romeo and Juliet, and the Cook in Alice in Wonderland.
Watanabe joined American Ballet Theatre as a member of the corps de ballet in January 2025.