From ‘Giselle’ to ‘I Do’:
A State Street Ballet Love Story
State Street Ballet’s Ryan Lenkey and Saori Yamashita
Turned Stage Chemistry into Real-Life Romance
By Maggie Yates | February 26, 2026
Read more from the 2026 Wedding Guide here.
“As a professional dancer, you move around a lot,” said Ryan Lenkey, a company member with State Street Ballet. Originally from the East Coast, Ryan has trained and performed throughout the United States. He made his way to Santa Barbara during the pandemic, where he joined State Street Ballet — and met his future wife, ballerina Saori Yamashita. Now Saori Yamashita Lenkey, Saori came to the U.S. from Japan as a teen to pursue her career in dance.
Their romance began while rehearsing a production of Giselle. “We had good stage chemistry,” said Ryan. “Then I realized, ‘Oh, this is real chemistry. This playful flirting is too good.’ ” The two have danced together in many productions, but being cast as the titular star-crossed lovers in Romeo and Juliet felt special.
After the production’s emotional finale, Ryan proposed to Saori on the Granada Theatre stage during the bows. “I’m so elated that we got to have this experience and share our love with the audience,” said Ryan. “We broke their hearts, and then we sewed them back together.”
While the time and place of this on-stage proposal was a surprise, the intention to marry was not. The couple had traveled to Japan before Romeo and Juliet, where they picked out a ring. “I knew that Saori was the one,” Ryan said. “Dancers often end up with other dancers because this lifestyle is so crazy. And we’re so deep into it that it takes one to know one. I’m so lucky that I found somebody that I’m so compatible with, who understands me in my work in life.”
Ryan coordinated the proposal with director Megan Philipp and Santa Barbara Symphony director Nir Kabaretti. During the bows, Ryan left the stage to get the ring, and Saori immediately knew something was afoot. “We rehearse the bows,” she explained, “so I knew something was up when he left the stage.” When Ryan returned, he assumed the position and officially asked for Saori’s partnership in marriage. “The whole audience went silent,” he said. “It was very exciting, and they applauded for us, and it was so overwhelming. It was just such a beautiful moment.”
Wedding planning came into focus, and the couple decided that a big wedding seemed stressful — especially with Saori’s family living in Japan, travel and coordination were overwhelming. Instead, the two wed in an intimate, outdoor ceremony the following month. Dr. Nicole Callahan, a State Street Ballet board member, invited the couple to use her property in the hills, with its sweeping views of Santa Barbara, for the ceremony (she also did much of the event planning). Nathaniel Tyson, a friend and fellow State Street Ballet dancer, performed the ceremony, and ballet photographer Andre Yew stepped into a new role as a wedding photographer to capture all the special moments.
After the ceremony, the couple enjoyed a wedding cake from Andersen’s Danish Bakery and toured the Santa Barbara Museum of Art. They had drinks with friends at Shaker Mill, followed by dinner at Silvers Omakase. “That was a premiere dining experience,” Ryan said. “All the other couples there had gotten engaged or married that day. All eight of these people were celebrating the same thing we were.”
The couple married on November 22, 2025, an auspicious date in Japanese culture. Saori explained that in Japanese, saying the date uses the same words as “good” and “couples,” hence “Good Couples Day.” “Many Japanese couples get married on this day,” said Saori. What qualifies them as a good couple, they say, is the blissful feeling of being in each other’s company. “He makes me laugh every day — not once, but every hour, at least,” she said.
What’s next? The Lenkeys hope to have a larger ceremony in Hawai‘i, the central point between their families in Japan and the U.S.A., in the next year or two. Also, “Come see us!” said Saori. The couple will be in State Street Ballet’s RECESS!, a program suitable for all ages, at the Lobero Theatre on March 21 and 22.
You must be logged in to post a comment.