Shona Dunlop MacTavish | |
|---|---|
| Born | Shona Katrine Dunlop (1920-04-12)12 April 1920 Dunedin, New Zealand |
| Died | 18 June 2019(2019-06-18) (aged 99) Dunedin, New Zealand |
| Known for | Dancer, choreographer |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 3 |
| Relatives |
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| Website | shonadunlopmactavish |
Shona Katrine MacTavishMBE (néeDunlop; 12 April 1920 – 18 June 2019) was a New Zealand dancer, teacher, author, choreographer and pioneer in liturgical dance in theAsia-Pacific.[1][2] She was known as "the mother of modern dance in New Zealand".[3]
Shona Katrine Dunlop was born inDunedin on 12 April 1920;[4][5][6] her father was Francis Dunlop, a Scottish-bornPresbyterian minister who lectured in moral philosophy at theUniversity of Otago,[7] and her brother wasBonar Dunlop who became a noted sculptor.[8]
In 1935, she and her family travelled to Europe, and she enrolled to study withexpressionist dancer and choreographerGertrud Bodenwieser at theUniversity of Music and Performing Arts, Vienna. She studied there for two years and then joined as a principal dancer.[9] Bodenwieser and many of her dancers wereJewish and in 1938, when the Nazis invaded Austria, the ballet was forced to leave Europe.[9] The company toured South America then based themselves inSydney, Australia, and toured New Zealand during the late 1940s.[3] Dunlop continued to dance with theBodenwieser Ballet and also taught ballet in local Sydney schools, including Abottsleigh Girls' School.[10]
In 1948, Dunlop metScottish Free Church minister MacDonald MacTavish in Sydney, and married him less than three weeks later atSt Stephen's Presbyterian Church in central Sydney.[11] MacTavish, a Canadian and cousin of Canadian prime ministerMackenzie King, was on his way to China to take up a position as a missionary inYichang and Dunlop resigned her position as a dancer to go with him.[11][12] The couple left Sydney in July 1948 forBeijing where they spent three months learning Mandarin and waiting for government permission to move toManchuria. While they were in Beijing, fighting broke out between Communist and Nationalist forces and the MacTavishs evacuated toTaiwan. They were invited to work at the English Presbyterian Church Mission inTainan; Dunlop MacTavish taught not only English, but also ballet for the local children.[13] In 1957, her husband died while they were serving as missionaries in South Africa and she returned to Dunedin as a solo mother with three young children.[4]
Initially, Dunlop MacTavish taught dance at Dunedin'sColumba College and in 1958, she opened her own studio – New Zealand's first modern dance studio.[9] By 1963, she had set up a performing group, Dunedin Dance Theatre.[14]
Dunlop MacTavish's fascination with the diverse range of dance forms she had observed while living and touring abroad, combined with her own strong Christian faith, led her to explore the practice of liturgical dance - the use of dance as an expression of religious belief. During the 1960s and 1970s, she developed and delivered workshops and lectures on liturgical dance throughout the Asia-Pacific region, such as the East Asian Christian Council of Youth Conference, the Federation of Theological Colleges of South East Asia and theWorld Council of Churches. For many of these projects she choreographed ballet and dance performances for and with the participants and congregations.[9]
In the 1970s, Dunlop MacTavish moved to the Philippines and took a position as professor of dance atSilliman University. While there, she conducted research into the dance traditions of the indigenous people of the Philippines. She observed and documented dances performed to mark courtship and marriage, and to celebrate harvests and births and hypothesised that all indigenous dance stems from religious beliefs.[9]
Dunlop MacTavish also worked as a choreographer in New Zealand. Her first work for the Royal New Zealand Ballet was a reconstruction of herPania of the Reef in 1970. For this production, she sourced a Māori vocalist and borrowed traditional clothing from a museum.[9] In 1998 she choreographed the operaOutrageous Fortune.[15]
In the1985 New Year Honours, Dunlop MacTavish was appointed aMember of the Order of the British Empire, for services to the arts.[16] In 2001, she was awarded an honoraryDoctor of Literature degree by theUniversity of Otago.[17] In 2017, she was made an honorary member of Dance Aotearoa New Zealand.[18]
Dunlop MacTavish suffered serious injury in a crash in 2012, but continued to teach dance after her recovery.[19] She died in Dunedin on 18 June 2019 at the age of 99,[3][20] and her funeral atKnox Church, Dunedin included dancers escorting her casket and improvised dance by members of the congregation.[21] She was survived by her long-time artistic collaborator and friend, Louise, and her three children.[4]
Dunlop MacTavish's son, Dugald MacTavish, a geohydrologist, was awarded theQueen's Service Medal, for services to conservation and the environment, in the2019 Queen's Birthday Honours.[22][23] Her daughter,Terry MacTavish, was appointed aMember of the New Zealand Order of Merit, for services to theatre and education, in the2019 New Year Honours.[24][25] Dunlop MacTavish's granddaughter, Jinty MacTavish, was elected to theDunedin City Council in 2010 as a 25-year-old, the second-youngest person ever elected as a Dunedin councillor.[26]
In October 2025, an exhibition based on Dunlop MacTavish's life and career opened atToitū Otago Settlers Museum in Dunedin.[27] The exhibition features costumes and memorabilia, as well as a balletbarre for visitors to try, and is due to run for two years.[27][28]
