Björn Dobbelaere is an internationally renowned crossover conductor of musicals and operettas, as well as classical and popular concert productions. Over the years, he has worked with the likes of Sir Elton John, Chris Martin (Coldplay), Kerry Ellis, Eden Espinosa, and Dame Shirley Bassey.
Having been musical director and musical supervisor for the original West End and international productions of Les Misérables, The Phantom of the Opera, and Lady Chatterley’s Lover, he has also been a regular guest conductor for GöteborgsOperan’s musical theatre productions. Credits include Miss Saigon, Cats (Göteborg and Stockholm), Mary Poppins, Guys and Dolls, Chess, The Hunchback of Notre Dame, Oliver!, Kärlek Skonar Ingen, and a commissioned crossover production of Romeo & Juliet, for which he also created the concept.
Björn Dobbelaere was the musical director and musical supervisor for the record-breaking production of Soldier of Orange in Amsterdam. Other credits include Sweeney Todd, The Wizard of Oz, Fiddler on the Roof, Carousel, On the Town, How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying, Little Women, and She Loves Me.
In 2016, he made his directorial debut with the musical Spring Awakening at the Culture Square Theatre in Shanghai.
Alongside his career as a conductor and a performing arts creative, Björn Dobbelaere also takes a keen interest in education. He was Head of Musical Theatre at the Royal Academy of Music in London from 2012 to 2015, for which he received an Honorary Associateship (Hon ARAM), and he has given guest lectures and masterclasses for Mountview Academy of Theatre Arts (London), Göteborgs Universitet (Artisten), Balettakademien Göteborg, Performing Arts school Göteborg, and the Shanghai Conservatory of Music.