Born in Seattle, U.S.A., and raised in Kamakura, Kanagawa, Japan, she began ballet in 1979, studying under Toshiaki Hatasa. She joined the Tachibana Ballet School and the Maki Asami Ballet Company, where she was selected for the role of Cupid at the age of 14, and made her debut as a leading role at the age of 18. 1997, when the New National Ballet Company was established, she transferred to the New National Theatre, Tokyo, and in 1997, when it opened, she joined the New National Ballet Company, where she performed in the full act of "The Sleeping Beauty" with Yoko Morishita and Miyako Yoshida in the Kakidoshi performance. She performed with Yoko Morishita and Miyako Yoshida in the full-length version of "Sleeping Beauty. In 2003, she became the first Japanese dancer to perform the title role in the New National Theatre Ballet's Japan premiere of Kenneth MacMillan's version of "Manon"; in 2007, she appeared as a guest in the Shiki Theatre Company's "Contact" and in 2009 in "Andersen"; in 2013 she formed the unit Altneu In 2013, she began collaborating with Yasutake Shimaji as the unit Altneu (Altneu).

He has been a guest artist at DaBY since its establishment at Dance Base Yokohama in 2020, and performed the world premiere of "The Dying Swan: The Truth of Its Death" created with Toshiki Okada at the Aichi Arts Center x DaBY TRIAD DANCE PROJECT "Dance Genealogy", the opening project of DaBY. As of 2024, it has been performed 27 times at 15 venues in Japan and abroad. 2024 will see the release of his second work with Toshiki Okada, "Giselle's Synopsis.

He received the Muramatsu Award for New Artist in 1996, the Dance Critics Society New Artist Award in 1996, the Einosuke Nakagawa Award in 1997, the Minister of Education's Art Encouragement Prize for New Artists in 1998, the Chieko Hattori Award in 2000, the Dance Critics Society Award in 2008, the Minister of Education's Art Encouragement Prize in 2009, the Nimura Dance Award in 2015, the Medal with Purple Ribbon in 2017, the 39th Tachibana Akiko Award in 2018 Special Prize, and the 69th Tokyo Shimbun Dance Art Award in 2021. She is a visiting professor of the ballet course at Senzoku Gakuen College of Music.