Artistic and educational director
Carole Massoutié, classical dance teacher
Originally from the Occitanie region, she discovered classical dance at the age of 4 in a private school before joining the academy (conservatoire) and then the BBAT. She trained with Claudie Winzer, Joëlle and Danielle Besso, Daniel Franck, Marika Besobrasova and Jeanne Albertini.
In parallel to several stage experiences, notably with the Avignon ballet, she discovered teaching and obtained her State Diploma in classical dance in 1997. Since then, she has devoted herself to teaching by creating her own professional training program, first in Rodez and then in Toulouse.
She choreographs the imposed variations for various competitions for which she is a member of the jury and she is also a guest teacher for different workshops.
For 20 years, she has been the director and certified teacher of her own Academy and has trained dozens of dancers and teachers who have excelled in various international competitions (Lausanne, YAGP, Deauville, Chausson d’Or ….) and auditions (Paris Opera, Royal Ballet, La Scala – Milan, John Cranko Schule…). Her mission is to share her knowledge, coordinate the teams of teachers and implement the teaching tools of today to train the dancer of tomorrow.
Permanent teachers
Jeanne Albertini, E.A.T. (Technical Aptitude Examination) teacher
Jeanne studied dance at the Toulon Academy (Conservatoire). She won the award for excellence. She then joined the CNSMD (Paris Academy/Conservatoire de Paris) where she obtained the first prize and was hired by the Théâtre du Chatelet in Paris and then by the Théâtre du Capitole in Toulouse, where she was named Principal Dancer (Danseuse Étoile) and danced the greatest roles in the repertoire and participated in numerous creations. At the same time, she created the Toulouse Choreographic Center. After obtaining her C.A. (Certificat d’Aptitude) teaching diploma, she was named accredited teacher with the Toulouse CNR (Conservatoire National de Région) then teacher of the E.A.T. and the State Diploma.
Lorenzo Bernardi, classical dance coach
He joined the La Scala – Milan dance school in 2004 and was awarded his diploma in 2012. Immediately after his graduation, he joined the ‘’corps de ballet’’ of the Rome Opera and was then hired by the Maggio Fiorentino company, the New English Ballet Theatre in London and the Balletto del Sud.
In 2015, he joined the Francois Mauduit company, where he dances the classical repertoire and new creations. He has also had the opportunity of creating two shows for the company as well as a show for the François Mauduit Junior Company.
Aurélie Bourgela, fitness trainer
After having trained in Sweden and then in France in classical dance, contemporary dance and also in singing, Aurélie is in constant search of the best physical preparation techniques. After several years of volunteering in the physical preparation of gymnasts and dancers, she found that Pilates provided her with the bases on which she could develop her classes and she went on to obtain a certification in this discipline. Her experience enables her to accompany young dancers and help them progress in the best way possible while remaining extremely attentive to their physical aptitudes.
Valerio Mangianti, classical dance teacher
Valerio was born in Italy in 1978 and trained with the masters George Bodnarciuc, Jean-Pierre Martal and Etela Prokorova. After winning the Vigniale Danza and Rieti competitions in Italy, he joined the Princess Grace Dance Academy, directed by Marika Besobrasova, where he completed his training in 1998. He was hired by the Deutsch Oper Am Rhein in Düsseldorf, directed by Youri Vamos, where he was promoted to Soloist in 2004 and to Principal Dancer in 2006. In 2009, he was hired by the Théâtre du Capitole as Principal Dancer until 2015. In 2011, he obtained his State Diploma as a classical dance teacher. Since then, he has worked as a ballet master for his former director, Youri Vamos, in Tirana (Albania) and in Brno (Czech Republic). He has been a jury member for competitions and guest teacher for several companies.
Jean-Christophe Pitard-Bouet, classical and character dance teacher
It was in Normandy, at the age of 4, that Jean-Christophe discovered classical and character dance thanks to his teacher, Annick Wuillème, who was one of Irina Grjebina’s (character dance teacher) students at the Paris Opera and one of Olga Stern’s students.
While studying classical literature, he continued to broaden his knowledge of classical and character dance.
Two decisive encounters were those with Mrs. Roxana Barbacaru, a character dance teacher at the Paris Opera Dance School, and Mrs. Floriane Blitz, a graduate of the Paris Opera Dance School and teacher at the International Dance Academy in the discipline of educational training in classical dance. Jean-Christophe, who has an extensive experience in teaching, has been decorated with Academic Palms, is a state qualified teacher in classical dance and a member of the French association of the masters of classical dance, likes to share his passion for character dance which, thanks to its style, dynamics and rhythmic movements, enhances the dancer’s artistic qualities.
Marieke Simons, classical dance and PBT dance teacher
Marieke Simons was born in Amsterdam.
She studied at the Amsterdam National Academy of Dance.
In 1988, she participated in the Prix de Lausanne where she won the professional prize.
That same year, she was hired by the Dutch National Ballet where she worked with choreographers such as Hans van Manen, Rudi van Dantzig, Armando Navarro, Maguy Marin, Carolyn Carlson, William Forsythe, Glen Tetley and Christopher Bruce.
She also dances as a half soloist and soloist in the entire classical repertoire.
In 1996, she received the gold medal for dance in Holland (after a season in which she performed Juliet and many roles choreographed by George Balanchine).
In 1997, she joined the Ballet of the Capitole under the direction of Nanette Glushak where she continued to dance the main roles in classical and contemporary ballets.
At the Ballet National de Marseille, she has had the opportunity of working on a regular basis with Mr. Raymond Franchetti.
For 12 years, she has devoted herself to the transmission of classical dance and the “Progressing Ballet Technique” method with enthusiasm and passion.
Marie-Elisabeth Wachter, contemporary dance teacher
Originally from the Hautes-Pyrénées, Marie-Elisabeth began her training at Tarbes Academy (Conservatoire) before continuing a multidisciplinary training course in Paris.
She has been a performer for Geraldine Armstrong and Wayne Barbaste (Jazz).
She soon turns to contemporary dance.
In 1992, she won the first prize at the Paris International Dance Competition (Female Solo). She also won the Performance Prize awarded by the ADAMI at the Bagnolet Competition.
She has been a performer for JC Gallota and Joseph Russillo and she has worked for Brittany’s National Theater of Dance with the choreographer Gigi Caciuleanu.
She is currently a teacher at several amateur and professional training centers and also works for some academies (Tarbes, Montauban, Agen…)
In this context, she choreographs imposed variations for various competitions (CND (National Dance Center), Arcachon, Bordeaux) of which she is a jury.
As a regular guest teacher at the Preljocaj Ballets since 2000 and choreographer of her own company “Hors Sol” since 2015, Marie-Elisabeth is keen on further reinforcing the bridge between training and the professional world.
Elizabeth Ruimi, floor barre (barre à terre) teacher
Elizabeth trained at the National Center of Contemporary Dance in Angers under the direction of Alwin Nikolaïs.
She received a scholarship from the French Ministry of Culture to study dance in the United States at Champain University (Illinois) and in New York (Graham, Limon Cunningham techniques, etc.)
She has danced in different companies in France and abroad and teaches contemporary dance and floor barre (barre à terre).
Elizabeth works in dance training centers and state diploma training centers.
Laure Muret, ballet teacher and assistant choreographer
Laure is a classical dance teacher/assistant choreographer.
She did all her training at the Paris Opera Dance School and joined the ‘’Corps de Ballet’’ of the Opera at the age of 17.
In 1992, she was promoted to sujet (je ne sais pas comment le traduire en anglais : est-ce danseur principal ?). She has danced as soloist in Rudolf Nureyev’s ballets (‘’Swan Lake’’, ‘’The Nutcracker’’, ‘’La Bayadère’’, ‘’Cinderella’’, ‘’Sleeping Beauty’’, ‘’Raymonda’’, ‘’Don Quixote’’), as well as for the great classics of the repertoire (‘’Giselle’’, ‘’La Sylphide’’, ‘’Paquita’’…) and the ballets of Serge Lifar and George Balanchine and she has also had the title role of Degas’ ‘’La Petite Danseuse’’ (‘’Little Dancer’’) by Patrice Bart… Laure becomes interested in more contemporary dance styles very early on and works with Maurice Béjart, Roland Petit, Jiří Kilián, John Neumeier, Twyla Tharp, Lar Lubovitch, Angelin Prejlocaj, Mats Ek, William Forsythe, Pina Bausch, Nacho Duato, Wayne Mc Gregor… who cast her as soloist.
She was chosen by Jerome Robbins to dance in the ‘’The Concert’’, ‘’The Four Seasons’’, ‘’Moves’’. John Neumeier gave her the leading role in ‘’The Nutcracker’’.
Apart from the Paris Opera, Laure has also performed as soloist in national and international dance galas. In parallel to her career as a performer and having developed a keen interest in teaching and transmission, she decided to prepare her second career. She obtained her State Diploma as a dance teacher in 2004 and her C.A. (Certificat d’Aptitude) teaching diploma in 2008. She left the stage of the Paris Opera in 2012. For the past ten years, she has been assisting Kader Belarbi as rehearsal director and assistant choreographer (ballet, film, events). In 2013, she restaged the third act of ‘’La Bayadère’’ by Rudolf Nureyev for the Ballet of the Capitole.
She is invited to teach in dance workshops in France and abroad and in institutions, such as the National Dance Center, the Ballet of the Capitole, the CRR (Conservatoire à Rayonnement Régional)in Paris and Toulouse, the Cannes Dance Acadamy (École Supérieure de Danse de Cannes)… She coaches trainingstudents and professional dancers.
Géraldine Lucas, classical and neo-classical rehearsal teacher
Géraldine started dancing in Caen with Chantal Ruault, before joining the ‘’Jeune Ballet de l’avant Scène’’ in Lausanne to finish her training.
In 2006, she joined the François Mauduit Choreographic Company. Since then, she has danced the entire repertoire of the company, from works by Balanchine, Petipa and Bournonville to more contemporary creations by Alexandre Bourdat, Mallory Gaudion and Bruno Jacquin. She has been a key figure in François Mauduit’s creations since the launching of the company and continues to dance while imparting the company’s repertoire during workshops.
Valérie Soum, PILATES teacher
Valérie started dancing at the age of 4 years old with Marie-Laure Médova and Marika Besobrasova. She continued her training as a ballet dancer with Daniel Franck and Rosella Hightower, while taking classes with The Ballet du Capitole Company where she participated in several productions. In 1990 & 1991, she joined the Goh Ballet Academy in Vancouver(Canada) and the Superior Conservatory of Quebec in Montréal where she also trained in Contemporary Dance, Modern jazz and tap dancing. She continued her ascent by being engaged in the Company M.Marmatcheva in Paris, and at the same, obtained her D.E in 1996 at the J.Stanlowa institute, where she worked with Bertrand Barena of the Paris Opera Ballet. Passionate about children, teaching and transmission, she decided to return to provinces to teach ballet, while continuing her pedagogical training at the Berkeley Ballet Theater(USA) where she discovered _¨positive education” and a new way of teaching and transmitting. In 2017, she resumed her studies in order to be a certified Pilates instructor and also trained in food nutrition (Basic and balanced diet, glycemia & overweight and sports nutrition) and in stress management. Finally, she then trains in relaxation in order to be certified Relaxologist. She is thus trained in different relaxation techniques and masters various tools, which allow her to listen to students, prepare and coach them as well as possible. She thus can offer a complete training to the students, both at the level of the body and the spirit while bringing a well-being conducive to success. Very involved, with an experience of more than 25 years as a teacher and a great pedagogy, she teaches ballet and Pilates, while coaching the students in order to make them progress in all serenity.
Guest teachers
Bruno Cauhape, ballet master, classical dance teacher
After four years at the Paris Opera Ballet School, he graduated top of his class and was immediately hired by the Paris Opera ‘’Corps de Ballet’’.
Appointed coryphée, then sujet, he has had leading roles in both classical and contemporary productions in France and abroad throughout his career.
As a qualified teacher with a C.A. (Certificat d’Aptitude) teaching diploma in classical dance, he taught Principal Dancers (Danseurs Etoiles) and the Paris Opera ‘’Corps de Ballet’’ for several years. He then became Ballet Master and teacher at the Marseille National Ballet, as well as at the Marseille National School of Dance.
He is regularly invited as a member of the jury, a teacher during workshops, and a teacher for many international companies.
He has also restaged the entire ‘’Giselle ballet’’ for the Inoue Ballet Company in Tokyo.
He has been a teacher at the Malandain Ballet Biarritz since 2010.
Isabelle Boutot, classical dance et repertoire teacher
Isabelle has been a soloist at Geneva’s Grand Théâtre, the Ballet of the Opéra de Bordeaux and the group ” Nureyev and Friends “.
In 1976, she won a prize at Lausanne’s International Competition. After a year during which she perfected her skills with G. Mayer and R. Franchetti, she was hired by the ‘’corps de ballet’’ of Geneva’s Opera, became a soloist and worked under the direction of P. Van Dick and O. Araiz two years later. This period will be marked by her meeting with Serge Golovine for the “Les Sylphides ” ballet and Serge Lifar for the “Suite en Blanc” ballet. She continued her career in the USA and devoted herself to the Balanchinian repertoire. She discovered this universe thanks to Maggie Black, Anthony Tudor’s former assistant, and coach to many New York dancers of the 80’s such as K. Mackenzie, current Director of the American Ballet Theatre, M. Van Hamel, ABT Star, J. Bocca, Twyla Tharp, etc. With the invaluable assistance of Violette Verdy, the following works were staged: ‘’Allegro Brillante’’, ‘’Theme and Variations’’, ‘’Tchaikovsky Pas de Deux’’, ‘’Stars and Stripes’’, ‘’Who cares?’’, ‘’Sonatine’’, ‘’Tarentella’’, and ‘’The Nutcracker’’ by the American master, George Balanchine. She then met Rudolf Nureyev who hired her for his small traveling group “Nureyev and Friends”. She participated in his last 3 American tours and some shows in Italy and Spain. The last part of her career was in Bordeaux under the artistic direction of Paolo Bortoluzzi, with whom she danced “Incontro”. She also performed in his creations, such as “Vivaldi-Strauss’’, ‘’Tchaikovsky and Dance’’, ‘’Summer Nights’’, ‘’Carmina Burana”. She also worked under the direction of E. Vu An and danced the repertoire of the Compagnie Bordelaise.
François Mauduit, ballet master and choreographer
Born in 1983 in Caen, he started dancing at the age of 14. Gold medalist in several international competitions, he joined the Paris National Dance Academy (Conservatoire National Supérieur de Danse de Paris) at the age of 15, then at 17, the Paris Opera Dance School. His teachers were Serguei Soloviev, Alain Debrus, Jacques Namont and, notably, Jean-Yves Lormeau. In 2002, he was awarded his first contracts at the Opera of Florence and then at the Opera of Bordeaux. In 2003, Maurice Béjart hired him in his company. Over a four-year period, he performed the greatest works of the master and distinguished himself as a soloist in “The Magic Flute”, “The Firebird”, “Dionysus” and “Love, the Dance”. Having developed a passion for choreography in 1999, which was also the year of his first show, François sets up his own company in Caen in 2006 with a dozen professional dancers. The company was subsidized by the Calvados County Council until 2011 and in 2012, the company went completely private. François Mauduit has created more than sixty ballets for his company, that he has taken on tour in France, Europe and Mexico. In 2010, he received the prestigious “Léonide Massine” award. Regularly invited to perform for Galas that bring together famous names from the Paris Opera and other international troupes, François is also choreographer for other companies such as the Winter Palace Ballet with the creation of “The Little Prince” in 2015 and “The Nutcracker” ballet in 2017 with the National Ballet of Gdansk, which was a great success. In 2014, he created the “Nijinsky Award” in Deauville, an international dance competition for young dancers. The competion is now in its sixth year and will take place on December 1st and 2nd. François also regularly gives conferences on the history of dance on the following themes: “Classical ballets, transmission and evolution”, “Maurice Béjart”, “The bird and the dance”, “Balanchine/Chaikovsky”, “The Russian ballets”. He also works for television with the “Prodiges” (‘’Prodigies’’) program and for the cinema as consultant. In 2016, he created the Junior Company, a springboard for young dancers who are totally immersed in the company. He prepares them for the stage and auditions. In 2019, he created “N’oubliez pas de danser” (‘’Don’t forget to dance’’) for the Paris National Dance Academy (Conservatoire National Supérieur de Danse de Paris).
Luc Verbitsky, contemporary dance teacher
Luc Verbitzky is a former student of the ACM Academy and in 2010, he was admitted to the Paris National Dance Academy (Conservatoire National de Paris) in Contemporary Dance. He graduated in 2014 with honors and the congratulations of the jury. The same year, he landed a contract with the CCN-Ballet de Lorraine in Nancy. Since then, he has been putting on performances from the contemporary repertoire created by Merce Cunningham, William Forsythe, Twyla Tharp, Trisha Brown and he choreographs his own roles for ballets by Itamar Shahar Serussi, Cindy Van Acker, Alban Richard, Marie Chouinard, Maud Le Pladec and Miguel Gutierrez…
In 2018, he was awarded his Dance Teacher’s State Diploma and was trained in SAFE® FLOOR by Alexandre Munoz.
He teaches classes, workshops and dance courses, as well as SAFE® FLOOR classes.
Julien Mercier, modern dance teacher
In 1999, Julien joined the Ecole Supérieure de Danse de Cannes, first under the direction of Rosella Hightower and then, Monique Loudieres. In 2001, he joined the young ballet of the same school where he danced ballets from the repertoire as well as works by T. Malandin, G. Balanchine, J. Kylian, D. Bagouet …. He then continued his career at the Aix en Provence CCN (National Choreographic Center) under the direction of Angelin Preljocaj. He joined the companies of Rick Odums and Geraldine Armstrong, thanks to whom he danced works by Donald Mc Kayle, Ronald K. Brown, Matt Mattox, Bob Fosse… He discovered and trained in the Horton technique, taught by Alvin Ailey, with Milton Myers, Elizabeth Roxas, Anna Marie Forsythe. He was invited to participate in the Jacob’s Pillow Festival in 2010 and danced excerpts from Alvin Ailey, Ohad Naharin and Nacho Duato. At the same time, he trained in aerial apparatus and joined various circuses and visual shows (Gruss circus, Roncalli circus, Pascal Obispo’s Adam and Eve, Mamma Mia! At the Mogador Theater, Bivouac Company, Karine Saporta, Blanca Li….). Since 2015, he has performed in Philippe Lafeuille’s Tutu Show and Car/men by the same choreographer. In 2022, he joined the Difé Kako company under the direction of Chantal Loïal for the Bakannal Ballet show, as well as François Mauduit’s company. He obtained his Teacher’s State Diploma at the CND (National Dance Center) in 2020 and is a contributor to the DNSPD (National Advanced Professional Dancer Diploma) of the PSPBB (Pôle Supérieur Paris Boulogne-Billancourt), the Rick Odums International Jazz Dance Center, the Robyn Orlin Company, the CRR (Conservatoire à Rayonnement Régional)in Cergy Pontoise and François Mauduit’s Junior Company. In 2020, he founded the company Gueule d’Ange with the actor Gabriel Marc with the aim of working on various projects. He notably created La Petite Danseuse de Swan with the Junior Company’s dancers, which is a show for young audiences with a classical aesthetic. He joined the Carole Massoutié Academy as a dance teacher in September 2021.