Elizabeth Cameron Dalman (born 1934) is an Australian choreographer, teacher, and performer. She founded

Australian Dance Theatre Australian Dance Theatre (ADT), known as Meryl Tankard Australian Dance Theatre from 1993 to 1999, is a contemporary dance company based in Adelaide, South Australia, established in 1965 by Elizabeth Cameron Dalman . The ADT was the first moder ...

and was its artistic director from 1965 to 1975. She is also the founding director of

Mirramu Dance Company Mirramu Dance Company is an Australian contemporary dance company founded in early 2002 by Australian dance pioneer Elizabeth Cameron Dalman (the founder of Australian Dance Theatre) and dancer-choreographer Vivienne Rogis. The company is base ...

Early life and education

Elizabeth Cameron Dalman was born in 1934 in

Adelaide, South Australia Adelaide ( ) is the list of Australian capital cities, capital city of South Australia, the state's largest city and the list of cities in Australia by population, fifth-most populous city in Australia. "Adelaide" may refer to either Greater A ...

. Her father was a politician in the

Menzies government Menzies is a Scottish surname, with Gaelic forms being Méinnearach and Méinn, and other variant forms being Menigees, Mennes, Mengzes, Menzeys, Mengies, and Minges. Derivation and history The name and its Gaelic form are probably derived f ...

and her mother was an art lover. Dalman began dancing when she was three years old and studied dance during her school years. She trained with Nora Stewart, with whom she studied both classical ballet, and also with Margaret Morris modern dance technique. In 1957 Elizabeth travelled to

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, where watching a single performance "changed her life". The performance was modern dance by Jose Limon's company. She later travelled to

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

to continue her studies. In New York, she studied with

Martha Graham Martha Graham (May 11, 1894 – April 1, 1991) was an American modern dancer and choreographer. Her style, the Graham technique, reshaped American dance and is still taught worldwide. Graham danced and taught for over seventy years. She wa ...

Murray Louis Murray Louis (November 4, 1926 – February 1, 2016) was an American modern dancer and choreographer. Life Louis was known as one of the most influential American modern dancers and choreographers. Born in Brooklyn, New York, he grew up in Manh ...

James Truitte James is a common English language surname and given name: *James (name), the typically masculine first name James * James (surname), various people with the last name James James or James City may also refer to: People * King James (disambiguat ...

, and

Alwin Nikolais Alwin Nikolais (November 25, 1910 – May 8, 1993) was an American choreographer, dancer, composer, musician, teacher. He had created the Nikolais Dance Theatre, and was best known for his self-designed innovative costume, lighting and production ...

. While studying in Germany in 1958, she met American choreographer

Eleo Pomare Eleo Pomare (20 October 1937 – 8 August 2008) was a Colombian-American modern dance choreographer. Known for his politically-charged productions depicting the Black experience, his work had a major influence on contemporary dance, especially Bl ...

and the two remained friends until his death in August 2008. She lived in

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the Capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population ...

with Pomare and other dancers, was particularly influenced by Pomare's style of dance, and wanted to dance in the same style. In 1994 she obtained Masters of Creative Arts degree from

Wollongong University The University of Wollongong (abbreviated as UOW) is an Australian public university, public research university located in the coastal city of Wollongong, New South Wales, approximately 80 kilometres south of Sydney. As of 2017, the university ...

. In 2012 Elizabeth was conferred a doctorate in dance (PhD) from the

University of Western Sydney Western Sydney University, formerly the University of Western Sydney, is an Australian multi-campus university in the Greater Western region of Sydney, Australia. The university in its current form was founded in 1989 as a federated network u ...

for her thesis entitled ''The Quest for an Australian Dance Theatre''.

Career in dance

Returning to New York in 1962, she danced with the

Eleo Pomare Dance Company Eleo Pomare (20 October 1937 – 8 August 2008) was a Colombian-American modern dance choreographer. Known for his politically-charged productions depicting the Black experience, his work had a major influence on contemporary dance, especially Bla ...

for two years. Back in Adelaide in 1965, she formed the

and for ten years was artistic director. In 1999, she founded "Weereewa – A Festival of Lake George", which was held in

Bungendore Bungendore is a town in the Queanbeyan Region of New South Wales, Australia, in Queanbeyan-Palerang Regional Council. It is on the Kings Highway near Lake George, the Molonglo River Valley and the Australian Capital Territory border. It has ...

, New South Wales. The festival showcased visual and performance artists and writers, and continued more or less biennially until at least 2014.

Mirramu

In 2002 she co-founded (with Vivienne Rogis) and was and is inaugural director of the Mirramu Creative Arts Centre at Lake George, in

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

near

Canberra Canberra ( ) is the capital city of Australia. Founded following the federation of the colonies of Australia as the seat of government for the new nation, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The ci ...

. Mirramu performed at the March 2008 Weereewa - A Festival of Lake George event, and again in 2014, along with dancers from Malaysia and Taiwan.

Other roles and activities

Dalman was a mentor and board member of the Australian Choreographic Centre in

, and she has studied Indigenous dance forms. She has taught in Australian universities, and travelled as a performer, choreographer, teacher and researcher, including to Taiwan, Japan and West Africa.

Recognition and awards

Dalman won five Canberra Critics' Circle Awards for choreography and production between 1990 and 2015. *1994: Australian Artists Creative Fellowship, for five years *1995:

Medal of the Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, on the advice of the Australian Gove ...

(OAM), for her contribution to contemporary dance in Australia *1997: Lifetime Achievement Award from the Australian Dance Awards for achievement in dance *2004: artsACT Creative Artist Fellowship, Canberra *2015: inducted into the Australian Dance Awards Hall of Fame * 2020: Anthea da Silva's painting of Dalman, entitled ''Elizabeth'', winner of the inaugural

Darling Portrait Prize The National Portrait Gallery (NGPA) in Canberra is a public art gallery containing portraits of prominent Australians. It was established in 1998 and moved to its present building on King Edward Terrace in December 2008. History In the early ...

References

External links

* * (The Australian Dance Collection: a Directory of Resources) * {{DEFAULTSORT:Dalman, Elizabeth Cameron 1934 births Living people Australian choreographers People from Adelaide Australian women choreographers Recipients of the Medal of the Order of Australia