Cristina Hamel
Ms. Hamel graduated from the National Conservatory of Choreography in Bucharest, Romania and worked with Ballet-Masters of the “Mariinsky Theatre” (Kirov) in St. Petersburg, Russia before becoming Prima-Ballerina with the Bucharest National Opera House in Romania.
For the next twenty-three years, Ms. Hamel danced the majority of the classical roles, as well as promoting neo-classical and modern repertoire in the country. During this time, she was also guest artist with other dance Companies and toured internationally, performing with many other celebrated personalities of the dance world.
From 1980 she acted as Ballet Mistress with the “Theatre Capitole de Toulouse” in France, “Teatro alla Scala” (Milan), “Atter Balletto” (Reggio Emilia) and “Torino Ballet” in Italy, “Berlin Opera House” (Deutsche Oper Berlin), “Bonn Opera House” and “Düsseldorf Opera House” in Germany.
The next twelve years she is Professor of Dance with the “Superior Conservatory of Music and Dance in Cologne, Germany.
In 2002 she moves to France and is regularly invited as Ballet Mistress with many schools and large professional Dance Companies nationally and internationally.
Her students have joined major dance Companies, and have broadened the art of dance as teachers. She has produced pedagogy DVDs that are distributed by Sud Reportage, France.
Ms. Hamel is president of many national and international dance juries, as well as member of the French National Dance Confederation.
In 2002 she has received the Medal of Honor from the Romanian Government for a life dedicated to the advocacy of dance at its highest standards internationally.