Soraya Schulthess

I was born in Zurich to an Iranian mother and a Swiss father, and grew up in the United States before moving to Berlin in my early teens. My training at the Vaganova Ballet Academy and the Bolshoi Ballet School led to engagements with the Boris Eifman Ballet Company in Saint Petersburg and later Deutsche Oper Berlin. Alongside this, I completed two Bachelor’s degrees: in Dance and the Performing Arts (Ernst Busch Hochschule für Schauspielkunst) and in Cultural Studies and Russian (Humboldt University Berlin).

In recent years, I have increasingly combined live performance with music, visual art, and technology, creating interdisciplinary works that are both visually striking and conceptually driven. This vision led me to found DANCÆ, a company dedicated to producing cross-disciplinary projects, and Ballet Sur_real, its ballet branch, which merges classical technique with contemporary and electronic music culture. As founder, and artistic director, I oversee both the creative and organizational aspects of productions, bringing integrity, adaptability, and ambition to Berlin’s cultural landscape.

• Berlin State Ballet School Competition – Gold Medalist (2006)
• Youth American Grand Prix, New York Finals – Bronze Medalist (2002)
• Youth American Grand Prix, Denver – Gold Medalist (2001)