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Sir Robert Helpmann CBE (1909–1986) was a dancer, actor and choreographer. The son of a sheep farmer and a frustrated actress, Helpmann grew up in Mount Gambier, South Australia. At the age of eleven he made his stage debut, dressed in a tutu, at a charity concert in front of Dame Nellie Melba. Soon after he joined Anna Pavlova's touring company and went to England where by 1934 he was lead male dancer at the Vic-Wells Ballet (later Sadler's Wells). There, he formed a celebrated partnership with Dame Margot Fonteyn. Renowned for his dramatic and innovative ballet choreography, Helpmann was co-director and then director of The Australian Ballet from 1965 to 1976; during this period, in 1965, he was Australian of the Year. He appeared in twelve films, including The Red Shoes, which he also choreographed. Renowned for flamboyance and wit, at the age of 60 he performed as Dr Coppélius in The Australian Ballet's Coppélia and he was still dancing two months before his death in the role of the Red King in Checkmate.
This collage, originally assembled for the art book In the Making, resulted from David Moore's short sitting with Helpmann in his Sydney hotel room. The cramped space limited Moore's creative options, so he took these silhouettes against the window.
Purchased 1998
© Lisa, Michael, Matthew and Joshua Moore
http://davidmoorephotography.com.au/
On one level The Companion talks about the most famous and frontline Australians, but on another it tells us about ourselves.
Michael Desmond discusses Fred Williams' portraits of friends, artist Clifton Pugh, David Aspden and writer Stephen Murray-Smith, and the stylistic connections between his portraits and landscapes.
The complex connections between four creative Australians; Patrick White, Sidney Nolan, Robert Helpmann and Peter Sculthorpe.
The National Portrait Gallery acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of Country throughout Australia and recognises the continuing connection to lands, waters and communities. We pay our respect to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures and to Elders past and present. We respectfully advise that this site includes works by, images of, names of, voices of and references to deceased people.
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