Christian Badea (né Cristian Badea) is a Romanian-American opera and symphonic conductor. Immigrated in 1974, he was a student of Leonard Bernstein.
A native of Bucharest, Romania, Badea's early training was as a classical violinist. He later studied conducting at the Juilliard School of Music in New York. He has performed as a conductor of both the opera and symphonic repertoires. His opera career has included over 160 performances with The Metropolitan Opera in New York, as well as many productions at the Royal Opera in London, the Vienna State Opera, the Bavarian State Opera, Copenhagen Opera, Stockholm Opera and Sydney Opera.
As an orchestral conductor, Badea has performed in concert halls throughout Europe, North America, and Asia.
His recording of Samuel Barber's opera Antony and Cleopatra received a Grammy in 1985.