Jury

Olga Melnikova

Olga Melnikova Professor for Classical Dance at Palucca University of Dance Dresden Olga was born in St. Petersburg, Russia, and received professional ballet education at the Vaganova Ballet Academy.

Olga began a professional career at the Mariinsky Theatre (Kirov Ballet) from 1989 to 2000, later joining the Semperoper Ballet Dresden as first soloist. In 2008, Olga graduated from the Vaganova Academy’s Pedagogical Department with a diploma as a teacher of classical dance.

Since 2011, Olga has been a professor for classical dance at the Palucca University of Dance Dresden, and the head of the apprentice program in cooperation with the Semperoper Dresden.

As an experienced pedagogue, Olga has for several years been a guest teacher at the Hungarian Dance Academy.

Guy Albouy

Born in France and a graduate of the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Danse de Lyon, Guy Albouy began his professional career at the age of 17 with the Basler Ballet in Switzerland, where he was quickly promoted to Soloist. He later joined the Victor Ullate Ballet in Spain and subsequently worked as a Principal Dancer with companies such as the Deutsche Oper am Rhein, the Companhia Nacional de Bailado, the Leipziger Ballet, and the Semperoper Ballet.

During his international career, in addition to performing leading roles from the major classical repertoire, Guy gained extensive and versatile experience performing works by renowned choreographers such as G. Balanchine, A. Bournonville, J. Cranko, M. Béjart, J. Neumeier, J. Kylián, W. Forsythe, Mats Ek, Hans van Manen, Y. Vámos, N. Christe, C. Bruce, and U. Scholz.

Guy has also been invited as a Guest Artist to perform with companies including Tulsa Ballet, Ballet Arlington, Bayerisches Staatsballett, Deutsche Oper Berlin, Opéra de Nice, Slovenian National Ballet, Estonian National Ballet, and Bucharest National Ballet, among others.

In 2008, Guy and his wife, Marina Antonova Albouy, co-founded the “M&G International Ballet Summer School,” which took place in Germany and France. The program has gained recognition for providing top-level ballet and dance education.

He has also appeared in numerous international ballet galas and festivals worldwide and regularly serves as a jury member at international ballet competitions.

After twenty-three years on stage and receiving his Diplôme d’État de Professeur de Danse, he dedicated himself to teaching, working with institutions such as the Palucca University of Dance in Dresden, the Royal Swedish Ballet, and the Royal Swedish Ballet School.

Since 2022, Guy has been sharing his vast artistic experience and knowledge with the next generation of dancers at Mosa Ballet School in Belgium.

Nina Bakhareva

Nina Bakhareva, born in Moscow, began her ballet training in 1988 at the prestigious Vaganova Ballet Academy in St. Petersburg, with graduation in 1996. She launched her professional career with the Eifman Ballet before performing with the Kremlin Ballet, Rostov State Opera, and Moscow Stanislavsky Ballet. Throughout her career, Nina has graced some of the most renowned stages across Europe, the USA, and Asia.

In 2006, Nina relocated to Germany, and performed as a guest dancer with the Mainfranken Theatre Würzburg.

In 2023, she founded NBBallett, where she leads ballet courses and workshops.

She currently teaches at Dr. Hoch’s Conservatory in Frankfurt and is the founder of the Frankfurt International Ballet Competition. Nina also serves as a jury member at national ballet competitions and conducts ballet workshops.

Vanda Ștefănescu

Vanda Ștefănescu is a Romanian choreographer and founder of Parol Dance Junior Company in Bucharest.

She began developing her choreographic voice at a very young age, presenting her first original work at just 16. Since then, she has become a passionate and prolific choreographer, known for blending classical ballet foundations with contemporary movement language and emotionally charged themes.

Her choreographic works have been presented on some of Romania’s most prestigious stages, including the National Opera Bucharest, National Theater Bucharest, National Operetta and Musical Theater “Ion Dacian,” Odeon Theater, Jewish State Theater, National Opera Timișoara.

As a performer, Vanda Ștefănescu trained at Floria Capsali Choreographic High School and at UNATC Bucharest. Her career includes collaborations with Vortice Dance Company (Portugal) and Stadttheater Giessen (Germany), as well as appearances in television productions. She has worked with internationally recognized choreographers and directors, including Massimo Gerardi, Nae Caranfil, Mario Radacovsky, Akos Tihanyi, Attila Beres, Tarek Assam, David Williams, Tyce Diorio, and Milan Gromilic.

Vanda is also an experienced dance educator with over a decade of teaching and coaching professional dancers and students in pre-professional programs. Her teaching blends technical precision with artistic depth, encouraging personal exploration and long-term development. She has coached young dancers for international competitions, many of whom have received awards and scholarships.

Ivan Kozlov

Ivan Kozlov Director, Choreographer, Professor, Dancer and Pedagogue. Principal Dancer of the Mariinsky Theatre and Eifman Ballet. Founder of the Kyiv City Ballet. Principal Guest Performances at the Bolshoi Theatre, La Scala, with Roberto Bolle and Friends, Benois de la Dance, Hans van Manen Festival, and others. Head of Classical Ballet Department at the Belgrade Dance Institute. Staged and choreographed over 25 ballets which have been performed internationally, including at the Theatre du Chatelet, Bunka Kaikan, Sadlers Wells, and others. Silver Medal at Moscow International Ballet Competition and Serge Lifar International Ballet Competition. Coached and rehearsed worldwide. International competition judge.