Australia Dancing - Meryl Tankard Australian Dance Theatre (1993

Meryl Tankard Australian Dance Theatre (1993 - 1999)

Lansac, Regis: Meryl Tankard Australian Dance Theatre, the company, 1993

Meryl Tankard was appointed artistic director of Australian Dance Theatre in 1992 to take up work in Adelaide in 1993. Regis Lansac became artistic associate with the company. Tankard's appointment followed a period of four years in Canberra when Tankard directed the Meryl Tankard Company. For Meryl Tankard Australian Dance Theatre, Tankard reworked some of the pieces she had made in Canberra including Songs with Mara and Kikimora. New works created in Adelaide included Furioso (1993), Aurora (1994), Possessed (1995), Rasa (1996), which was made in collaboration with Padma Menon, Seulle (1997) and Inuk (1997). While in Adelaide she also choreographed The Deep End (1996) for the Australian Ballet.

In mid 1998 a schism, publicly aired, developed between the board of the company and Tankard. The last program of work staged by Tankard in Adelaide was 1998, subtitled A sampler by Meryl Tankard. It featured the company of 1998 - Justine Cooper, Sarah-Jayne Howard, Ryan Lowe, Fifienne Luvuma, Mia Mason, Steven McTaggart, Shaun Parker, Michelle Ryan, Peter Sears and Angelo Tsakalos - and consisted of excerpts from the works Tankard had developed and created in Adelaide. A new director was appointed in 1999 when the name of the company reverted to Australian Dance Theatre.

Bibliography:

For a discussion of Tankard's departure from Adelaide see Shirley McKechnie, 'Isolated and abandoned: a major voice is silenced', Brolga, 9 (December 1998). Meryl Tankard Australian Dance Theatre's repertoire is listed in The Ausdance Guide to Australian Dance Companies, 1994 (Canberra: AGPS, 1994), pp.143-157.

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