PBT’s 2025-2026 Season New Hires
Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre is thrilled to announce five new artists who will join PBT for the 2025-26 season! We had an opportunity to ask them more about themselves and introduce them to Pittsburgh.
Aoi Asano will join PBT as an Apprentice from PBT School’s Graduate Program.
Hometown: Tokyo, Japan
What is one of your favorite things about Pittsburgh? Kennywood
What ballet are you most excited about during PBT’s 2025-26 season? Dracula
What is your favorite ballet? The Sleeping Beauty
What do you enjoy doing when you’re not dancing? I enjoy crocheting.
What’s your guilty pleasure? My guilty pleasure is eating a ton of Korean food all night when I’m exhausted.
What is the first thing you did after you found out you were promoted to being a PBT Apprentice? I first called my parents and my roommate.
Henrique Barbosa joins Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre in 2025 as a Corps de Ballet Artist.
Hometown: Fortaleza, CE, Brazil
What city are you moving from? Houston, TX (Houston Ballet)
What are you most excited about doing in Pittsburgh? Exploring everything new. Coming from a different country, I’ve learned over the years the importance of curiosity and the amazing things that go with it. I seek learning what’s different every day. New landscapes and new foods are usually my go-to, and I know the restaurants in the Strip District and the gorgeous view of the Steel City are going to be my new favorite things.
What ballet are you most excited about during PBT’s 2025-26 season? Company B
What is your favorite ballet? Frederick Ashton’s La Fille Mal Gardée
What do you enjoy doing when you’re not dancing? I have many hobbies. Scuba diving is the most recent one, but I will say that, in general, I love to be out in nature.
What’s your guilty pleasure? I like to put my favorite singer on YouTube while I clean the house, so I can dance and sing along.
Ethan Clarisey joins Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre as a Corps de Ballet Artist.
Hometown: Clarence Center, NY
What city are you moving from? Boston, MA (Boston Ballet II)
What are you most excited about doing in Pittsburgh? Trying new restaurants
What ballet are you most excited about during PBT’s 2025-26 season?
A Midsummer Night’s Dream
What is your favorite ballet? Romeo and Juliet
What do you enjoy doing when you’re not dancing? Thrifting
What’s your guilty pleasure? Doughnuts
Michael Stadtherr joins Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre as an Apprentice for the 2025-26 season.
Hometown: Novi, MI
What city are you moving from? Tulsa, OK (Tulsa Ballet II)
What are you most excited about doing in Pittsburgh? Getting to know the city and culture
What ballet are you most excited about during PBT’s 2025-26 season? A Midsummer Night’s Dream
What is your favorite ballet? The Lady of the Camellias
What do you enjoy doing when you’re not dancing? Doing college classes and generally learning new things
What’s your guilty pleasure? Watching movies late at night
Isak Sorenson joins as an Apprentice Artist from PBT School’s Graduate Program.
Hometown: Duluth, Minnesota
What is one of your favorite things about Pittsburgh? I love how walkable the city is and all of the amazing views.
What ballet are you most excited about during PBT’s 2025-26 season? Dracula
What is your favorite ballet? George Balanchine’s Serenade
What do you enjoy doing when you’re not dancing? Hanging out with my friends and reading
What’s your guilty pleasure? Trash reality TV
What is the first thing you did after you found out you were promoted to being a PBT Apprentice? I found out that I was promoted backstage before a show of The Nutcracker. So, the first thing I did was quickly call my parents and then got into costume!