Australian Women's Register

An initiative of The National Foundation for Australian Women (NFAW) in conjunction with The University of Melbourne

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Van Praagh, Margaret (1910 - 1990)

Dame, DBE, OBE, FISTD

Born
1 September 1910
London, England
Died
1990
Occupation
Dancer, Director, Educator, Writer and Producer

Summary

Born in London, Dame Peggy van Praagh had a long and distinguished career in ballet as a dancer, teacher, producer, advocate and director. She came to Australia in 1959 to direct the Borovansky Ballet, and was instrumental in establishing the Australian Ballet in 1962. She was artistic director of the Australian Ballet from 1962-1974 and again in 1978. Dame Peggy received much recognition for her services to ballet, including her appointment to the Order of the British Empire (OBE, 1966) and as Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE, 14 June 1970).

Details

Peggy van Praagh was educated at King Alfred School, London. She studied dance in London, and danced with Ballet Rambert and Sadler's Wells from 1933-1945 before moving into teaching at Sadler's Wells Dance Theatre, 1945-1956. She then undertook freelance teaching and producing in Germany, Canada, Denmark, Sweden, Holland and USA 1956-1960.

Van Praagh became artistic director of the Borovansky Ballet in Australia in 1960. She became a Fellow of the Imperial Society of Teachers of Dancing (London), 1933, and a member of the Royal Academy of Dancing, 1969; received an Hon D Litt (University of New England), 1974; DBE 1970; OBE 1965; Queen Elizabeth Coronation Prize; Special Artist's Award, Australia Council, 1975; Britannica Australia Award for Arts 1970; and was made an honorary life member of the Australian Ballet Foundation, 1979.

Sources used to compile this entry: Lofthouse, Andrea (ed.), Who's who of Australian women, Methuen Australia, North Ryde (NSW), 1982, 504 pp; National Library of Australia, 'Van Praagh, Peggy (1910-1990)', in The Australian Dance Collection : a Directory of Resources, 23-Apr-2002, http://www.nla.gov.au/ausdance/praaghPeg.html; Papers of Dame Peggy van Praagh (1910-1990), http://www.nla.gov.au/ms/findaids/7223.html.

Archival resources

National Library of Australia Manuscript Collection

  • Papers, 1914 - 1985, MS 7223; van Praagh, Peggy; National Library of Australia Manuscript Collection. Details

Published resources

The Australian Women's Register Exhibitions

Books

  • Sexton, Christopher, Peggy van Praagh - a life of dance, Macmillan, South Melbourne, 1985, 226 pp. Details
  • Van Praagh, Margaret, How I became a ballet dancer, Nelson, London, 1954. Details
  • Van Praagh, Margaret, Ballet in Australia, Longmans, Melbourne, 1965, 32 pp. Details
  • Van Praagh, Margaret, The arts in Australia - ballet, Longmans, Melbourne, 1966. Details
  • Van Praagh, Margaret and Brinson, Peter, The choreographic art; an outline of its principles and craft, Adam and Charles Black, London, 1963, 387 pp. Details

Book Sections

  • Tankard, Meryl, 'Fourth Ausdance Dame Peggy van Praagh Memorial Address', in Crusader Hillis and Urszula Dawkins (eds), New dance from old cultures : Green Mill papers 1996, Australian Dance Council, Braddon, ACT, 1997. Details

Online Resources

See also

  • Lofthouse, Andrea (ed.), Who's who of Australian women, Methuen Australia, North Ryde (NSW), 1982, 504 pp. Details
  • Potter, M., 'Documenting Australian Dance: The Peggy van Praagh Collection', National Library of Australia News, 2000, pp. 7-10. Details

Clare Land

Created: 24 April 2002, Last modified: 1 May 2009

Site-wide information and acknowledgements

National Foundation for Australian Women The University of Melbourne, eScholarship Research Centre

http://www.womenaustralia.info/biogs/IMP0055b.htm

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