KRASIMIRA KOLDAMOVA, Academician
Krasimira Koldamova graduated from the Ballet School in Sofia (1954) and immediately joined the ballet of the Opera. She specialized at the Bolshoi Theatre Academy of Music Choreography in Moscow (1958).
Educators: Anastas Petrov, Lili Beron, Elizaveta Gerdt, Natalia Dudinskaya, Feya Balabina, Naima Baltacheeva, Alexandar Pushkin, Alberto Alonso.
She has worked with the choreographers: Leonid Lavrovsky, Yuriy Grigorovich, Oleg Vinogradov, Félix Blaska, Serge Lifar, Alberto Alonso, Pierre Lacotte, Bogdan Kovachev, Asen Gavrilov, Petar Lukanov, Hikmet Mehmedov.
Second Prize and Silver Medal at the International Youth Festival in Moscow (1957); First Prize and Gold Medal at the International Youth Festival in Vienna (1959); Laureate and winner of a special prize for acting from the First Ballet Competition in Varna (1964); state awards and titles of excellence in art. For extraordinary merits to the Republic of Bulgaria in the field of Bulgarian ballet art she was awarded by President Petar Stoyanov with the Order of Stara Planina II degree. In 2009 she was awarded the title “Academician” of the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences and Arts.
One of the creators of Arabesque Ballet (1967). She has created the Ballet Studio for the Discovery and Development of Talent (1991).
She has performed in Europe, Asia, Africa, Central and Latin America as prima ballerina of the Sofia Opera; as an étoile of Ballet Contemporain (France 1968-1969); étoile of Grand Ballet Classique de France (1972-73); étoile of Hellenic Choreodrama (Greece, 1973).
She has danced and knows the whole classical ballet repertoire. She has performed over 60 roles in 70 plays. In 2004, Koldamova celebrated 50 years on stage at the Opera with the show “Metamorphoses”. Her latest stage performance was at the Gala Concert “Meeting of Generations” at the 21st International Ballet Competition – Varna (2004).
Member of the jury at international ballet competitions in New York (1984, 1987, 1990); Paris (1984), Houlgate, France (1986), Osaka (1991, 1995), Jackson (1994), Moscow (2007) and many times at the International Ballet Competition in Varna.
Pedagogue in Japan (1985, 1989); Italy (1990); Greece (1991, 1992). Pedagogue of four classes of the State Choreographic School (National School for Dance Art) (1992, 1995, 2007, 2010). Artistic Director of the State Choreographic School (1984-88). To this day Academician Krasimira Koldamova discovers and develops talents in her ballet studio. Her students defend her name of a pedagogue and a répétiteur on the world ballet stages and in Bulgaria.
As a director and choreographer in recent years she has created ballet performances for children and adolescents.
World critics define her as one of the brightest stars of the ballet in Europe for the 20th century.
The great Bulgarian poet and playwright Stefan Tsanev called her “The flying white symbol of a whole generation of artists, musicians, artists, poets”.
