Kanako Saito is a native of Tokyo, Japan. She began dancing at the age of three under Ryoko Konishi. 

In 2000, she went on to train at the Moscow State Theater of Russian Ballet under Vyacheslav Gordeev.

In 2002, Kanako joined the Tokyo City Ballet where she danced for 13 years. Her roles include L'aurore in Coppélia, Spanish divertissement and Sugar Plum in The Nutcracker, Pas de Trois and Big Swans in Swan Lake, Waltz in Les Sylphides, and Sylphid in Kiyoko Ishii’s The Four Seasons.

Kanako joined City Ballet of Boston in 2022 and performed Tony Williams’s Airs & Dances. Her freelance work in the United States includes portraying Carlota Grisi in Pas de Quatre and performing original choreography by Gianni di Marco.