Roma Egan
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Roma Jean Egan (born 1948) was a child actress on Australian television, and an Australian ballet dancer and teacher. She was notably a senior soloist for
The Australian Ballet The Australian Ballet (TAB) 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 a ...
, and variously performed for the
Queensland Ballet Queensland Ballet, founded in 1960 by Charles Lisner, is the premier ballet company of Queensland, Australia, and is based in Brisbane. It is one of only three full-time, professional classical ballet companies in Australia. The company has ha ...
,
Basel Ballet Theater Basel is the Municipality, municipal Theater (structure), theatre of the city of Basel, Switzerland, which is home to the city's opera and ballet companies. The theatre also presents Play (theatre), plays and musical theatre, musicals i ...
, Ballet Victoria and
Royal New Zealand Ballet The Royal New Zealand Ballet is a ballet company based in Wellington, New Zealand. It was originally known as The New Zealand Ballet Company. History New Zealand Ballet was established in 1953 as an independent charitable trust by Royal Danis ...
.


Early life

Roma Jean Egan was born in Camberwell East, Victoria. Her primary education was at Hawthorn East State School and Croydon North State School (where she was
Dux ''Dux'' (, : ''ducēs'') is Latin for "leader" (from the noun ''dux, ducis'', "leader, general") and later for duke and its variant forms (doge, duce, etc.). During the Roman Republic and for the first centuries of the Roman Empire, ''dux'' coul ...
), and her secondary education was at Box Hill Grammar School and the Methodist Ladies' College (MLC), Melbourne. When Egan was 6 yrs, she first began ballet cases run by Edith Lynton; a widow whose husband was killed in
Borneo Borneo () is the List of islands by area, third-largest island in the world, with an area of , and population of 23,053,723 (2020 national censuses). Situated at the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia, it is one of the Greater Sunda ...
in 1945. Lynton had a varied career as a champion Highland dancer, a theatre actress, an announcer, a ballet mistress for the J. C. Williamson Company, and had travelled to England receiving degrees and honours from the
British Association of Teachers of Dancing The British Association of Teachers of Dance (BATD) is a UK-based dance examination board, with its Head Office in Glasgow, Scotland. The officially recognised date for the formation of the society is 30 November 1892, making it the first profe ...
. Lynton was also a judge in the major
Eisteddfod In Welsh culture, an ''eisteddfod'' is an institution and festival with several ranked competitions, including in poetry and music. The term ''eisteddfod'', which is formed from the Welsh morphemes: , meaning 'sit', and , meaning 'be', means, a ...
s in Australia. Egan carried out her
Royal Academy of Dance The Royal Academy of Dance (RAD) is a UK-based examination board specialising in dance education and training, with an emphasis on classical ballet. The RAD was founded in London, England in 1920 as the Association of Teachers of Operatic Danci ...
(RAD) grade exams under Edith Lynton, up to Grade 5 obtaining honours for all of them. Under Lynton's tutelage, Egan also participated in many Victorian Eisteddfods successfully.


Training

Egan signed up with the Bambi Smith Modelling College, and was commissioned for photo modelling in knitting magazines and modelled clothes on catwalks around the ages of 8–10 yrs. The modelling college taught Roma all aspects of modelling from how to walk, deportment, etiquette, and elocution. Bambi Smith (née
Patricia Tuckwell Patricia Elizabeth Lascelles, Countess of Harewood (née Tuckwell, formerly Shmith; 24 November 1926 – 4 May 2018) was an Australian-British violinist and fashion model. She was the second wife of George Lascelles, 7th Earl of Harewood, eldest ...
) was married to
Athol Shmith Louis Athol Shmith (19 August 1914 – 21 October 1990) was an Australian studio portrait and fashion photographer and photography educator in his home city of Melbourne, Australia. He contributed to the promotion of international photography ...
who had a famous photography studio in Collins Street. Athol & Bambi divorced in 1957 and Bambi then went onto marry
Lord Harewood Earl of Harewood (), in the County of York, is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. History The title was created in 1812 for Edward Lascelles, 1st Baron Harewood, a wealthy sugar plantation owner and former Member of Parliament for ...
, a first cousin of
Queen Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 19268 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. ...
. After Egan finished her Grade 5 RAD exams, at the age of 11 she then studied under Paul Hammond at the Elementary, Intermediate, Advanced, and Solo Seal levels. Paul Hammond had professionally danced for the Glyndebourne Ballet in the UK and for
Edouard Borovansky Edouard Borovansky (24 February 1902 – 18 December 1959) was a Czechoslovakia, Czech-born Australian ballet dancer, choreographer and director. After touring with Anna Pavlova's company, he and his wife, Xenia Borovansky, Xenia, settled in Aus ...
(founder of the
Borovansky Ballet The Australian Ballet (TAB) 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 ...
) in Melbourne. While Egan was studying at the elementary level with Paul Hammond, she also took up acting and appeared on ABC television's '' Terrific Adventures of the Terrible Ten'' (
Pacific Films Pacific Films is a film production company in New Zealand.Not to be confused with other companies with the name, including the film company in Hawaii that produced '' Phantom Below''. History The Pacific Film Unit was established in Wellington ...
) whose studios were behind GTV9 (now called Channel Nine) in Bendigo Street,
Richmond Richmond most often refers to: * Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada * Richmond, California, a city in the United States * Richmond, London, a town in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, England * Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town ...
. The filming occurred on weekends and the show was directed by Roger Mirams. During the week, on the ''
Tarax Show ''The Tarax Show'' was an early Australian children's TV program on GTV (Australia), GTV-9 in Melbourne running from 1957 to 1969. Synopsis Denzil Howson who was then Assistant Program Manager at GTV9, was asked by Norman Spencer to develop a d ...
'' Egan was part of GTV9 junior ballet, called ''The Royal Dancers'', performing two times a week with a different routine for each show. The Royal Dancers notably also included
Denise Drysdale Denise Anne Christina Drysdale (born 5 December 1948) is an Australian television presenter, variety entertainer, actress, singer, dancer and comedian. She is often affectionately known as "Ding Dong", a nickname invented by fellow performer Er ...
and was directed by Valmai Ennor, a former dancer with the
Sadler's Wells 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 ...
. The junior ballet also screened on ''
In Melbourne Tonight ''In Melbourne Tonight'', also known as ''IMT'', was a highly popular nightly Logie award-winning Australian variety show, variety television show produced at GTV-9 Melbourne from 6 May 1957 to 1970. Overview Graham Kennedy was the show's mai ...
'' (IMT), starring
Bert Newton Albert Watson Newton (23 July 1938 – 30 October 2021) was an Australian media personality. He was a Logie Hall of Fame inductee, quadruple Gold Logie–winning entertainer, and radio, theatre and television personality and compère. Ne ...
and
Graham Kennedy Graham Cyril Kennedy Order of Australia, AO (15 February 1934 – 25 May 2005) was an Australian entertainer, comedian and variety performer, radio and television host as well as a personality and actor of theatre, television and film. He wa ...
, also on GTV9. Egan is related on her paternal side to
Bert Newton Albert Watson Newton (23 July 1938 – 30 October 2021) was an Australian media personality. He was a Logie Hall of Fame inductee, quadruple Gold Logie–winning entertainer, and radio, theatre and television personality and compère. Ne ...
's wife, Patti McGrath. Pacific Films encouraged Egan to become an actress, however, her heart was more with classical ballet. So she pulled out of GTV9 to focus on ballet. At the age of 15, Egan's father died and these were difficult times. After completing her Intermediate and Leaving Certificates at high school, Egan studied full-time for six months under Paul Hammond, completing her Intermediate (honours) and Advanced RAD (highly commended) examinations. The
Australian Ballet School The Australian Ballet School is the premier ballet training facility in Australia, located in Melbourne. History The Australian Ballet School was founded in 1964 as the primary training facility for The Australian Ballet by Dame Margaret Scot ...
(ABS) had just begun in 1964, and in 1965 Egan was one of 20 successful applicants nationwide to undertake a 2-yr diploma in dance, under Dame Margaret Scott. The ABS was founded in 1964 to create a homogenous style and exclusively feed new talent into the
Australian Ballet The Australian Ballet (TAB) 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 an ...
(formed 1962). In December 1965, during the ABS holidays, Roma auditioned at the St. Martin's Theatre, South Yarra, Melbourne, to earn money to help support herself. The theatre accepted her and she played a prominent role in Peter O'Shaughnessy's ''Mumba Jumba and the Bunyip'' starring
Barry Humphries John Barry Humphries (17 February 1934 – 22 April 2023) was an Australian comedian, actor, author and satirist. He was best known for writing and playing his stage and television characters Dame Edna Everage and Sir Les Patterson. He appeare ...
. Much later in life, in 1998, Egan graduated with a Master of Fine Arts, majoring in dance psychology, at
Queensland University of Technology The Queensland University of Technology (QUT) is a public university, public research university located in the city of Brisbane in Queensland, Australia. It has two major campuses, a modern city campus in Gardens Point, Brisbane, Gardens Point ...
(QUT).


Performance career

In October 1966,
Russell Kerr Russell Whiston Kerr (1 February 1921 – 15 November 1983), was an Australian-born British Labour Party politician. Early life Kerr was born in Sydney, and was educated at the Shore School, the Sydney Church of England Grammar School, and Sy ...
came to the ABS to audition students for the New Zealand Ballet, and Egan obtained a contract with him. She worked in various productions including ''
Petrushka Petrushka ( rus, Петру́шка, p=pʲɪtˈruʂkə, a=Ru-петрушка.ogg) is a stock character of Russian folk puppetry. It was first introduced by traveling Italian performers in the first third of the 19th century during a period of W ...
'', and also the
ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Broadcasting * Aliw Broadcasting Corporation, Philippine broadcast company * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial American ...
filming of ''Petrushka'' starring Jonty Trimmer.
Charles Lisner Charles Maurice Lisner OBE (1928 - 1988) was a French-Australian dancer and the founder and first artistic director of the Queensland Ballet. Early life Charles Lisner was born in Paris in 1928 and emigrated to Australia with his parents in 19 ...
, founder and director of the Queensland Ballet, had for the first time obtained a government grant to engage six full-time dancers. Egan arrived in Brisbane in January 1969 and performed in the opening of Oedipus Rex and Swan Lake at the
SGIO Theatre The State Government Insurance Office Theatre (also known as the SGIO Theatre or Suncorp Theatre), was a 600-seat proscenium theatre built within the SGIO office building at 179 Turbot Street, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. History The Que ...
. In the following season Egan performed in
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 place ...
's production of ''
Giselle ''Giselle'' ( , ), originally titled ''Giselle, ou les Wilis'' (; ''Giselle, or The Wilis''), is a romantic ballet () in two acts with music by Adolphe Adam. Considered a masterwork in the classical ballet performance canon, it was first perfor ...
'' and Welch's ballet called ''Counterfeit''. In June 1969, Egan auditioned for the
Australian Ballet The Australian Ballet (TAB) 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 an ...
under the directorship of Dame Peggy van Praagh and was admitted in August that year. In the intervening time Egan moved to Adelaide and trained with Joanna Priest in her Childer's Street studio for two months. Egan was promoted to soloist in late 1971.
Graeme Murphy Graeme Lloyd Murphy AO (born 2 November 1950) is an Australian dancer and choreographer. With his fellow dancer (and wife since 2004) Janet Vernon, he guided Sydney Dance Company to become one of Australia's most successful and best-known d ...
made his first choreographic work, ''Ecco le Diavole'', to music by
Nino Rota Giovanni "Nino" Rota Rinaldi (; ; 3 December 1911 – 10 April 1979) was an Italian composer, pianist, conductor and academic who is best known for his film scores, notably for the films of Federico Fellini and Luchino Visconti. He also composed ...
, presented at Melbourne's Princess Theatre in July 1971, featuring Roslyn Anderson, Roma Egan, Janet Vernon, and Wendy Walker. In 1972, Egan took leave of absence, for a break, visited the
Kiryat Shmona Kiryat Shmona () is a city in the Northern District (Israel), Northern District of Israel on the western slopes of the Hula Valley near the Lebanon, Lebanese border. In it had a population of . Located near the Blue Line (withdrawal line), Israel ...
kibbutz A kibbutz ( / , ; : kibbutzim / ) is an intentional community in Israel that was traditionally based on agriculture. The first kibbutz, established in 1910, was Degania Alef, Degania. Today, farming has been partly supplanted by other economi ...
, near the
Golan Heights The Golan Heights, or simply the Golan, is a basaltic plateau at the southwest corner of Syria. It is bordered by the Yarmouk River in the south, the Sea of Galilee and Hula Valley in the west, the Anti-Lebanon mountains with Mount Hermon in t ...
, in
Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...
. In late 1972, Egan went to the London Dance Centre to secure a contract with an international ballet company. She was accepted by the newly formed Basel Ballet, Switzerland, directed by Heinz Spoerli. However, the contract did not start until August 1973, so she danced for Ballet Victoria in the intervening months under the directorship of Laurel Martyn. In January 1974, Egan rejoined the Australian Ballet, with Dame Peggy van Praagh still at the helm. During this time, Egan was promoted to senior soloist. In 1976, she was awarded a teaching scholarship from the National Theatre,
Prague Prague ( ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in the Czech Republic, largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia. Prague, located on the Vltava River, has a population of about 1.4 million, while its P ...
,
Czechoslovakia Czechoslovakia ( ; Czech language, Czech and , ''Česko-Slovensko'') was a landlocked country in Central Europe, created in 1918, when it declared its independence from Austria-Hungary. In 1938, after the Munich Agreement, the Sudetenland beca ...
. Roma left for Czechoslovakia to study Russian teaching techniques for seven months; after which she returned to Australia. She rejoined the Australian Ballet, in early 1977, under the directorship of Anne Woolliams.


Artistic direction and teaching

On 8 August 1981, Egan retired from the Australian Ballet, to take up the position as assistant artistic director at the Queensland Ballet. Egan was with the Queensland Ballet for two years, teaching daily classes, rehearsing, coaching, and reproducing ballets from videos. In 1984–1985, Egan was invited to take guest classes for the
Sydney Dance Company Sydney Dance Company is a contemporary dance company in Australia. They have performed at the Sydney Opera House in Australia, the Joyce Theater in New York, the Shanghai Grand Theatre in China, and the Stanislavsky Theatre in Moscow. His ...
under the directorship of
Graeme Murphy Graeme Lloyd Murphy AO (born 2 November 1950) is an Australian dancer and choreographer. With his fellow dancer (and wife since 2004) Janet Vernon, he guided Sydney Dance Company to become one of Australia's most successful and best-known d ...
and with the
Australian Ballet The Australian Ballet (TAB) 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 an ...
under the directorship of
Maina Gielgud Maina Gielgud (born 14 January 1945) is a British former ballet dancer and a veteran ballet administrator. She was artistic director of The Australian Ballet from 1983 to 1996. She had a twenty-year career as a dancer in Europe and the United Ki ...
. In 1986, Egan formed the National Ballet Centre in Wooloowin, Brisbane, located in the Heritage Hall. The Centre offered ballet from the ages of three (Kinderballet) to about 20-yrs (Advanced Classical); in some cases with students training the whole 17-years from the pre-school through to their university years. This included choreographing for each end of year performance and developing a Vaganova-based syllabus. The choreographer Fiona Bryant was trained by Egan.


References


Further reading

* Linda Doeser, ''Ballet and Dance'', Excalibur Books, 1980. * John A. Willis (Ed.), ''Dance World'', Volume 6, Crown Publishers, 1971. * David Formby, ''Australian Ballet'', Hamlyn, 1978.


External links


National Ballet Centre, Brisbane
{{DEFAULTSORT:Egan, Roma Living people 1948 births Australian ballerinas Australian television actresses 20th-century Australian actresses Actresses from Melbourne Australian child actresses Queensland University of Technology alumni Australian Ballet School alumni People educated at Methodist Ladies' College, Melbourne 21st-century Australian actresses 21st-century Australian dancers People from Camberwell, Victoria 21st-century Australian women educators