Doreen Bird MA FISTD ARAD (27 January 1928 – 4 February 2004) was a British dance teacher and founder of the

Doreen Bird College of Performing Arts Bird College – Conservatoire for Dance and Musical Theatre is an independent performing arts school and college, located in Sidcup, South East London, in the London Borough of Bexley. The college was founded as a dance school by Doreen Bird ...

Sidcup, Kent Sidcup is an area of south-east London, England, primarily in the London Borough of Bexley. It is south-east of Charing Cross, bordering the London Boroughs of Bromley and Greenwich. Before the creation of Greater London in 1965, it was in the ...

(now Southeast London). She was a fellow, examiner, lecturer, committee and council member of the ISTD, life member of the RAD, and Honorary MA. Prior to her death from

Leukaemia Leukemia ( also spelled leukaemia and pronounced ) is a group of blood cancers that usually begin in the bone marrow and result in high numbers of abnormal blood cells. These blood cells are not fully developed and are called ''blasts'' or ...

in 2004, she had been studying towards a

Ph.D A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields. Because it is ...

. As well as being a respected dance figure in the United Kingdom, Bird also travelled the World as a lecturer and adjudicator specialising in dance and musical theatre. The college which Bird founded is now recognised Internationally as a centre of excellence for dance and performing arts, with its students working worldwide in high-profile areas of the performing industry including West End and

Broadway theatre Broadway theatre,Although ''theater'' is generally the spelling for this common noun in the United States (see American and British English spelling differences), 130 of the 144 extant and extinct Broadway venues use (used) the spelling ''Th ...

Professional accomplishments

Dance College

In 1945, Bird founded the Doreen Bird School of Dance, the predecessor of today's Bird College of Dance, Music & Theatre Performance. Bird initially taught her students in her parents' living room then a local church hall, before opening a full-time performing arts course at permanent premises in Sidcup. This became the Doreen Bird College of Performing Arts and Bird remained Principal of the College until her retirement in 1998, when the name Bird College was adopted under its new Principal. The college is one of the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

's leading institutions for specialist dance and musical theatre training, with many ex-students of the college appearing in dance and theatre Worldwide including West End and

. The college now operates a range of courses including the National Diploma in Musical Theatre and the BA (Hons) Degree in Dance & Theatre Performances, both courses being established during Bird's tenure as Principal. The College has continued to expand since Bird died, becoming the first college of its kind in the UK to offer an MA Degree (by research), as subject specialist provider for the University of Greenwich. Since October 2007, the college has also been the official provider of Music and Dance services for the London Borough of Bexley.

Imperial Society of Teachers of Dancing

Doreen Bird was a member of the ISTD, an international dance examination board based in

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, 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 dow ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. As a life member of the organisation, she served as a

teacher A teacher, also called a schoolteacher or formally an educator, is a person who helps students to acquire knowledge, competence, or virtue, via the practice of teaching. ''Informally'' the role of teacher may be taken on by anyone (e.g. whe ...

examiner Examiner or The Examiner may refer to: Occupations * Bank examiner, a kind of auditor * Examiner (Roman Catholicism), a type of office in the Roman Catholic Church * Examinership, a concept in Irish law * Medical examiner * Patent examiner * Tr ...

, lecturer, committee and council member. She was appointed an examiner of the Modern Theatre Branch in 1957, National Dance Branch in 1958 and Imperial Ballet Branch in 1964, travelling the world as a representative of the society. Bird served as a member of the ISTD Grand Council from 1970 to 1975, and became a committee member of the Modern Theatre Branch in 1970, a post which she held for sixteen years until 1986. During her time as a committee member of the ISTD, Bird was influential in the examination of dance and the modernisation of the organisations syllabus and approach to teaching young dancers. As a member of the Modern Theatre Branch, Bird helped to compile all the society's new Major examination syllabi for

Modern Dance Modern dance is a broad genre of western concert or theatrical dance which included dance styles such as ballet, folk, ethnic, religious, and social dancing; and primarily arose out of Europe and the United States in the late 19th and early 20th ...

and

Tap Dance Tap dance is a form of dance characterized by using the sounds of tap shoes striking the floor as a form of percussion. Two major variations on tap dance exist: rhythm (jazz) tap and Broadway tap. Broadway tap focuses on dance; it is widely perf ...

. Much of this work is still used today, although the syllabi are often revised to keep up to date with current trends in dance.

Awards and honours

*In recognition of her work in the field of dance, Bird was awarded an Honorary

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Th ...

from the

University of Greenwich , mottoeng = "To learn, to do, to achieve" , former_name = Woolwich Polytechnic(1890–1970)Thames Polytechnic(1970–1992) , established = , type = Public university , budget = £214.9 million (2020) , administrative_staff = , chancel ...

in 1999 *Bird received the Imperial Faculty Award in 1996, in recognition of her long service as a member of the ISTD *In 2007 the ISTD launched the "Creation" choreographic competition as a memorial to Bird. The first competition was held at the Harlequin Theatre in Redhill, Surrey

References

Sources

Doreen Bird Obituary - Page 4

External links

Bird College of Dance & Theatre Performance Website

Imperial Society of Teachers of Dancing Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bird, Doreen Alumni of the University of Greenwich Dance teachers 20th-century English educators 1928 births 2004 deaths People from Sidcup English women educators 20th-century English women 20th-century English people