Jay Kim is a distinguished international dance artist, choreographer, and educator whose influence spans continents and institutions. Originally from South Korea, he serves as a tenured Associate Professor in the School of Dance at the University of Utah and is an ABT® National Training Curriculum Certified Teacher (Pre-Primary through Level 3). He is also the founder and Artistic Director of the International Ballet Summer Intensive at the University of Utah Asia Campus in Incheon, Korea—an elite cross-cultural training program serving dancers from Korea and the United States on the English-immersion Incheon Global Campus.
Professor Kim received his BFA from Sejong University and his MFA from the University of Utah. He began his formal ballet education on full scholarship at the prestigious Kirov Academy of Ballet in Washington D.C., training under celebrated masters Alla Sizova, Roudolf Kharatian, and Vladimir Djouloukhadze. His early foundation in Korea was built through full scholarships at the Dance Arts Institute, Chang-Mu Dance Conservatory, and Kwang-Ju Arts High School.
His professional career is marked by international accolades, including nine Grand Prix and Gold Medals across Ballet, Contemporary, Modern, and Korean Traditional Dance categories in global competitions. He performed as a Principal and Soloist with the Universal Ballet Company, touring 13 countries under the direction of Oleg Vinogradov, Bruce Steivel, and Julia Moon. He also danced with Korean National Ballet under Yuri Grigorovich, Korean Ballet Theatre under Cha-Young Suh, and Dayton Ballet Theatre under Dermot Burke.
Professor Kim is an internationally commissioned choreographer with original works presented in Spain, Korea, Costa Rica, and across the U.S., including in Michigan, Nevada, Texas, and Utah. His diverse choreographic portfolio ranges from full-length classical productions—such as Cinderella—to critically acclaimed contemporary works such as Sentience, Metamorphosis, Reciprocity, Remembrance, Elegy, and Binari. His ballets have been performed by Seoul Ballet Theatre, Kwangju City Ballet, Korean Ballet Theatre, Ballet Frontier of Texas, Utah Ballet, and others, and presented at major forums including Youth America Grand Prix, LINK Dance Festival, and as finalists in the Utah Regional Ballet and Metropolitan Ballet Choreography Design Competitions.
He is in high demand as a master teacher and adjudicator, having worked with Korea International Ballet Competition, World Ballet Grand Prix (Singapore & New York), Kirov Academy of Ballet, Seoul Ballet Theatre, Salt Contemporary Dance, Mercyhurst University, Oakland University, Brigham Young University, Ballet Center of Fort Worth, and many other leading organizations.
Professor Kim is a recognized ABT® Project Plié Partner Teacher, a partner with Kirov Academy of Ballet, and an engaged contributor to the global dance education community. He has presented scholarly work through CORPS de Ballet International—where he serves on the Membership and Outreach Committee—as well as the Dance Research Journal of Korea. He is a Steering Committee member of the Korea International Ballet Competition, and a proud member of the International Association for Dance Medicine & Science (IADMS).
With a rare synthesis of academic rigor, global artistic insight, and technical mastery, Jay Kim continues to shape the next generation of classical and contemporary dancers at the highest level.