Phyllis May Danaher MBE FRAD (27 July 1908 – 31 May 1991) was an Australian dancer, teacher of dance and choreographer.

Early life and education

Danaher was born on 27 July 1908 in Bulimba, a suburb of

Brisbane Brisbane ( ; ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and largest city of the States and territories of Australia, state of Queensland and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia, with a ...

Queensland Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a States and territories of Australia, state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Austr ...

, to William Patrick Danaher and Ivy May (née Bagnall). She began dancing in the early 1920s with Margaret St Ledger and then, after 1927, with Marjorie Hollinshed who took over St Ledger's school. She also went to Sydney to study at the Frances Scully School of Dance. Line_of_ballet_dancers_on_their_toes_1931

Line_of_ballet_dancers_on_their_toes_1931

Career

Danaher appeared as an extra in

Anna Pavlova Anna Pavlovna Pavlova. (born Anna Matveyevna Pavlova; – 23 January 1931) was a Russian prima ballerina. She was a principal artist of the Imperial Russian Ballet and the Ballets Russes of Sergei Diaghilev, but is most recognized for creating ...

's company in Brisbane during its 1929 Australian Tour and in the 1930s, she performed in J. C. Williamson's musicals. In 193, she became a co-owner of Hollinshed's school, where she had previously trained and became the school's principal after Hollinshed retired. She was the first Queensland teacher to gain the Advanced Teachers Certificate from the Royal Academy of Dance in 1937. That year, Danaher founded the Queensland branch of the Australasian Society for Operatic Dancing and the Brisbane Ballet Theatre, later renamed the Ballet Theatre of Queensland. She choreographed their first original work, ''The Wasps'', which debuted at

Brisbane City Hall Brisbane City Hall, in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia, is the seat of the Brisbane City Council. It is located adjacent to King George Square, where the rectangular City Hall has its main entrance. The City Hall also has frontages and entran ...

in 1956. She served as the company's director until 1984. From 1957 to 1982, Danaher was a Children's Examiner for the Royal Academy of Dance. Her contributions were recognised by her designation as Fellow of the Royal Academy of Dance and the award of Member of the Order of the British Empire for service to dance in Queensland. Two of Danaher's more successful students were Principal Dancers with the Australian Ballet, Garth Welch and Lucette Aldous.

Death and legacy

Danaher died in Clayfield, Brisbane on 31 May 1991. She was buried in Brisbane's Lutwyche Cemetery.Danaher Phyllis May
— Brisbane City Council Grave Location Search. Retrieved 2 September 2014. Every year, the Phyllis Danaher Memorial Scholarship is awarded to a dancer who has been with the Ballet Theatre of Queensland for at least one year.

References

Australian ballerinas Entertainers from Brisbane 1908 births 1991 deaths Burials at Lutwyche Cemetery Ballet teachers {{Dance-bio-stub