Elizabeth Smith

Originally from Nashville, Tennessee, Elizabeth grew up training at Centennial Youth Ballet and Vanderbilt University. During her pre-professional years, she attended summer intensives at programs including ABT, Orlando Ballet, Saratoga Summer Dance Intensive and the American Academy of Dance in Paris. Additionally, she has experience in musical theatre, and as a college student, was heavily involved as both a dancer and artistic director at the University Ballet of Chicago.

Elizabeth is currently pursuing a Master of Arts in Law and Diplomacy at the Fletcher School at Tufts. A graduate of the University of Chicago, she has spent over three years connecting with her family’s roots in Japan - first as a student and researcher, and later working in a professional media company. She has also spent a year in South Korea as a Fulbright and Critical Language Scholar.

Throughout her time living abroad, Elizabeth has kept dancing as a way to both build community and stay connected with herself. In addition to taking regular ballet classes, she studies classical Japanese dance (Nihon Buyou), and during her time in Seoul, loved dropping into KPop classes, where she is proud to say she was consistently the most awkward person in the room.