Christiane Theobald
Dr. Christiane Theobald was born in Koblenz. Alongside her studies in the humanities, she trained in classical ballet and began her career in 1987 as a ballet dramaturge at the Deutsche Oper Berlin. In 1993, she moved to the Staatsoper Unter den Linden, where she took on the roles of Ballet Operations Director and Dramaturge. During the process of merging Berlin’s ballet companies, she pursued a postgraduate degree, completing a thesis that explored the structural transformation of the companies and laid the groundwork for establishing an independent ballet ensemble. When the Berlin Opera Foundation and the Staatsballett Berlin were founded in 2004, she was appointed Deputy Director alongside founding director Vladimir Malakhov, a position she retained during the directorships of Nacho Duato and Johannes Öhman/Sasha Waltz.
From August 2020 to July 2023, she served as interim director of the company, a role entrusted to her by Berlin’s Senator for Culture. Even in this position, she remained committed to the Staatsballett Berlin’s founding motto: «Preserve tradition, make the present visible, and foster the future.» During a period of transition marked by artistic, structural, and societal challenges, she made it her mission to strengthen the ensemble spirit, driven by a desire to secure a vibrant and contemporary future for the art of dance. Her priorities extended beyond daily work with the dancers to include audience development, occupational health for dancers, and structural improvements in the field of dance.
Dr. Theobald is also the author of several ballet librettos and has taught at institutions such as the Freie Universität Berlin and the Hochschule für Musik und Darstellende Kunst Frankfurt am Main. Additionally, she is active in advocating for the dance sector. She serves as a board member of the German Ballet and Dance Theatre Directors' Conference (BBTK) and was its spokesperson from 2009 to 2013. From 2006 to 2018, she was also a board member of the Dance Germany Association.