Marilyn Fay Jones OBE (born 17 February 1940) is an Australian dancer and teacher of dance. She has been described as "the greatest classical dancer Australia has produced".

Training and career

Jones studied with Tessa Maunder in Newcastle then at the

Royal Ballet School The Royal Ballet School is a British school of classical ballet training founded in 1926 by the Anglo-Irish ballerina and choreographer Ninette de Valois. The school's aim is to train and educate outstanding classical ballet dancers, especially ...

in London and danced with the

Royal Ballet The Royal Ballet is a British internationally renowned classical ballet company, based at the Royal Opera House in Covent Garden, London, England. The largest of the five major ballet companies in Great Britain, the Royal Ballet was founded in ...

from 1957 to 1958. She was a principal artist with the

Borovansky Ballet The Australian Ballet is the largest classical ballet company in Australia. It was founded by J. C. Williamson Theatres Ltd and the Australian Elizabethan Theatre Trust in 1962, with the English-born dancer, teacher, repetiteur and direct ...

and was invited to join its successor, the

Australian Ballet The Australian Ballet is the largest classical ballet company in Australia. It was founded by J. C. Williamson Theatres Ltd and the Australian Elizabethan Theatre Trust in 1962, with the English-born dancer, teacher, repetiteur and direc ...

as a founding principal in 1962. She danced with the Australian Ballet as a prima ballerina until 1978, when she took up the position of Artistic Director of the company from 1979 to 1982. After receiving a Creative Arts Fellowship from the Australian Government, Jones founded the Australian Institute of Classical Dance in 1991 and became its artistic director. The AICD was set up to oversee and encourage the development of classical dance in Australia. Other appointments have included director of the National Theatre Youth Ballet (1996–98), and Director of the National Theatre Ballet School (Melbourne; 1995–98). She taught at the Western Academy of Performing Arts in 2000.

Honours

She was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire on 1 January 1972 for her services to Australian ballet.It's an Honour
retrieved 27 July 2014.

Marriage and family

In 1963, Jones married fellow

principal dancer A principal dancer (often shortened to principal) is a dancer at the highest rank within a professional dance company, particularly a ballet company. A principal may be male or female. The position is similar to that of '' soloist''; however, p ...

Garth Welch Garth de Burgh Welch (born 14 April 1936) is an Australian dancer and choreographer. Early life and training Welch was born in Brisbane, Queensland. He was educated at the Anglican Church Grammar School. His initial dance training took plac ...

and they had two sons,

Stanton Welch Stanton De Burgh Welch (born 1969) is an Australian dancer and choreographer. He currently serves as the Artistic Director of the Houston Ballet. Early life Welch was born in Melbourne to Marilyn Jones and Garth Welch, two prominent Australia ...

and Damien Welch, who both became dancers. Stanton has since become a choreographer, and Artistic Director of the Houston Ballet. Damien was formerly a principal artist with

The Australian Ballet The Australian Ballet is the largest classical ballet company in Australia. It was founded by J. C. Williamson Theatres Ltd and the Australian Elizabethan Theatre Trust in 1962, with the English-born dancer, teacher, repetiteur and direc ...

, and has a son Oscar with Kirsty Martin, also a retired principal artist with the company.

References

Books and articles

* Laughlin, Patricia Jean, Marilyn Jones, a brilliance all of her own, Quartet Books Australia, South Yarra, Victoria, 1978 * Kitcher, Barry, From Gaolbird to Lyrebird: a life in Australian ballet., Front Page, South Yarra, Victoria, 2001; revised and expanded eBook edition, BryshaWilsonPress, 2016. * Who's Who in Australia, 2001, p. 967 * A sense of purpose: great Australian women of the 20th century, pp. 112–13. Australian ballerinas People from Newcastle, New South Wales 1940 births Living people Australian Officers of the Order of the British Empire Edith Cowan University faculty {{dance-bio-stub