Australia Dancing - Ingram, Geoffrey (1924

Ingram, Geoffrey (1924 - 2003)

Bradley, Paul : Portrait of Geoffrey Ingram, 1993

Melbourne-born Geoffrey Ingram studied ballet with Xenia Borovansky before dancing briefly with Laurel Martyn's Ballet Guild. With Ballet Guild he partnered Martyn in Swan Lake Act II and created the role of The Bloke to Martyn's Doreen in the company's 1952 production of The Sentimental Bloke. He also studied dance in Europe and appeared in the London production of the musical Oklahoma!

In the late 1950s he was one of the people who promoted the establishment of a national ballet in Australia and, when the Australian Ballet Foundation was established, he was appointed its administrative assistant. During a subsequent year overseas, he visited all major ballet establishments, including those in Milan, London, Leningrad and Moscow, and studied administration and promotion methods. In 1963 he became administrator of the Australian Ballet and organised its promotion and educational program. In 1964 Ingram conducted negotiations in London with Rudolf Nureyev and Margot Fonteyn, which resulted in their guest appearances with the Australian Ballet during the company's first international tour. He was administrator of the Australian Ballet until 1965.

In the late sixties Geoffrey Ingram made excursions into film production and also owned a restaurant. In 1969 he undertook the first challenge to the legality of an arms agreement when, in the High Court of Australia, he challenged the SALT II treaty between the Soviet Union and United States. In the 1990s he was honorary visiting fellow in the performing arts at the Australian Defence Force Academy, Canberra.

Research Materials

Other resources

Find more about Ingram, Geoffrey in:

Internet - Google
Articles - New York Public Library Dance Collection
Pictures - Picture Australia