Ballet Theatre of Queensland, founded in 1937 by

Phyllis Danaher Phyllis May Danaher MBE FRAD (27 July 1908 – 31 May 1991) was a dancer, teacher of dance and choreographer. Early life and education Danaher was born on 27 July 1908 in Bulimba, a suburb of Brisbane, Queensland, to William Patrick Dana ...

FRAD, is the oldest continuous dance company in Australia. Ballet Theatre is based in

Brisbane Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Queensland, and the third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of approximately 2.6 million. Brisbane lies at the centre of the South ...

in the Australian state of

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , establishe ...

History

Predating both 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 the Queensland Ballet, Ballet Theatre of Queensland was established by

to bring dance on a regular basis to people in Queensland. Prior to its inception, ballet had only been presented by touring companies such as that of the famous Russian ballerina,

Anna Pavlova Anna Pavlovna Pavlova ( , rus, Анна Павловна Павлова ), born Anna Matveyevna Pavlova ( rus, Анна Матвеевна Павлова; – 23 January 1931), was a Russian prima ballerina of the late 19th and the early 20t ...

on an irregular basis. Danaher was determined to change this state of affairs and to provide opportunities for talented Queenslanders to shine in this area of the performing arts. Today the company founded by Danaher continues to present full-scale productions every year at the Playhouse, Queensland Performing Arts Centre,

South Bank, Queensland South Bank is a cultural, social, educational and recreational precinct in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. The precinct is located in the suburb of South Brisbane, on the southern bank of the Brisbane River. Landmarks South Bank Parklands T ...

. Many wonderful artists have acted as Artistic Director over the years including from 2002 until 2011, Jodie-Anne White and Boris Bivona. Following White's death in 2012 they were succeeded by Timothy Brown and Libby McDonnell, with Tim Brown as sole Artistic Director from 2013-2019.

Funding, organisational and artistic structures

Ballet Theatre of Queensland is a non-profit incorporated organisation, governed by a board of non-executive directors under the Chairmanship of Craig Spencer. In 2013 the corporate structure of the company was changed to incorporate the governing board and an Executive Director (Denise Richardson) was appointed to manage the company in conjunction with the Artistic Director, Timothy Brown. The organisation receives no recurrent or operational funding from the Australian or Queensland Governments. Ballet Theatre of Queensland relies purely on box office from its annual production, corporate sponsors and costume and set hire fees. Each annual production highlights the talents of dancers from dance schools across south-east Queensland. All dancers are required to take part in an audition process and are usually aged between ten and eighteen. Invited artists sometimes perform as guests with the company. Dancers of Ballet Theatre of Queensland all undertake individual studies and ballet examinations, such as

Royal Academy of Dance "Health and happiness" , predecessor = , successor = , formation = 1920 , extinction = , type = NGO , status = Registered charity , purpose = Examination board – dance education and training , headquarters = 36 Battersea SquareSW11 3 ...

, with their own dance schools.

Productions and equipment

In 2008, Ballet Theatre of Queensland presented performances of ''The Sleeping Princess'' in Brisbane and on tour in Toowoomba. Previous years have seen productions of ''

Coppélia ''Coppélia'' (sometimes subtitled: ''La Fille aux Yeux d'Émail'' (The Girl with the Enamel Eyes)) is a comic ballet from 1870 originally choreographed by Arthur Saint-Léon to the music of Léo Delibes, with libretto by Charles-Louis-� ...

'', ''

The Nutcracker ''The Nutcracker'' ( rus, Щелкунчик, Shchelkunchik, links=no ) is an 1892 two-act ballet (""; russian: балет-феерия, link=no, ), originally choreographed by Marius Petipa and Lev Ivanov with a score by Pyotr Ilyich Tchai ...

'', ''

Peter Pan Peter Pan is a fictional character created by Scottish novelist and playwright J. M. Barrie. A free-spirited and mischievous young boy who can fly and never grows up, Peter Pan spends his never-ending childhood having adventures on the mythi ...

'', ''

Pinocchio Pinocchio ( , ) is a fictional character and the protagonist of the children's novel '' The Adventures of Pinocchio'' (1883) by Italian writer Carlo Collodi of Florence, Tuscany. Pinocchio was carved by a woodcarver named Geppetto in a Tuscan ...

'', '' Aladdin'', ''

Paquita ''Paquita'' is a ballet in two acts and three scenes originally choreographed by Joseph Mazilier to music by Édouard Deldevez and Ludwig Minkus. Paul Foucher received royalties as librettist. History ''Paquita'' is the creation of French comp ...

'' and many others. As a result, a vast quantity of sets and costumes have been created which are available for hire by other performing arts groups.

References

{{authority control Dance companies in Australia Culture of Brisbane Queensland Ballet 1937 establishments in Australia Performing groups established in 1937 Companies based in Brisbane