Joan Denise Moriarty
Encyclopedia
Joan Denise Moriarty was an Irish
choreographer and musician
. She founded the first professional ballet
company in Ireland.
. The family moved to England around 1907, possibly before she was born. She apparently spent most of her early adult life in Liverpool
, where she explored her love of Irish culture and music. She was a champion Irish dancer and war pipes player. She studied ballet with Marie Rambert
in London, however, a bout of scarlet fever at the age of 14 meant she spent many months away from the studio. When she returned she had grown to almost six foot and Madame Rambert subsequently dismissed her from class for being too tall. Rambert encouraged her to go into teaching and she trained and became a distinguished teacher of ballet, registering with the Royal Academy of Dance
.
Her early dance and music awards include:
. He wanted her to play warpipes in his new piece, Clare's Dragoons
, which led to a lifelong artistic and personal relationship which would produce an original form of Irish ballet and music.
This company performed between 1959 and 1964 when the Arts Council of Ireland
did not renew the funding and the company subsequently went into administration. However, not to be put off by such a minor inconvenience, Moriarty lobbied for funding for another company and in 1973 she set up the Irish National Ballet. This company performed until 1985 when, to much personal disappointment, the Arts Council under directives from a commissioned report known as the Brinson Report, terminated the grant and effectively forced the company to collapse. She would continue to work with the Cork Ballet Company, bringing
ballet to remote parts of Ireland until her death.
phenomenon. International success came with The Playboy of the Western World
with music by The Chieftains
. This was performed in Sadlers Wells and in New York to critical acclaim and was an attempt to fuse folk style and ballet with a score of traditional Irish music.
An Irish Symphony called The Seal Woman. Other works performed included the folk ballet The Planting Stick with music by her long term collaborator Aloys Fleischmann
. This ballet has enjoyed a resurgence of interest in the new millennium and although the original steps are long gone some new choreographers are setting the music using folk style dance to tell the tale of The Planting Stick.
This influence was in keeping with Moriarty and Fleischmann's ideas of a uniquely Irish form of ballet and music. Both the music and dance are fusions of traditional Irish elements and the classical forms of both disciplines. In this respect, the ballet The Táin was to prove their greatest collaboration and received rave reviews at its premiere at the Gaiety Theatre, Dublin on 6 October 1981, although this work has never been performed since.
Irish people
The Irish people are an ethnic group who originate in Ireland, an island in northwestern Europe. Ireland has been populated for around 9,000 years , with the Irish people's earliest ancestors recorded having legends of being descended from groups such as the Nemedians, Fomorians, Fir Bolg, Tuatha...
choreographer and musician
Musician
A musician is an artist who plays a musical instrument. It may or may not be the person's profession. Musicians can be classified by their roles in performing music and writing music.Also....* A person who makes music a profession....
. She founded the first professional ballet
Ballet
Ballet is a type of performance dance, that originated in the Italian Renaissance courts of the 15th century, and which was further developed in France and Russia as a concert dance form. The early portions preceded the invention of the proscenium stage and were presented in large chambers with...
company in Ireland.
Early life
Little is known of Moriarty's early life. Her parents were from Mallow, County CorkMallow, County Cork
Mallow is the "Crossroads of Munster" and the administrative capital of north County Cork, in Ireland. The Northern Divisional Offices of Cork County Council are located in the town....
. The family moved to England around 1907, possibly before she was born. She apparently spent most of her early adult life in Liverpool
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
, where she explored her love of Irish culture and music. She was a champion Irish dancer and war pipes player. She studied ballet with Marie Rambert
Marie Rambert
Dame Marie Rambert DBE was a Polish-Jewish dancer and dance pedagogue who exerted a great influence on British ballet, both as a dancer and teacher.- Early years and background :...
in London, however, a bout of scarlet fever at the age of 14 meant she spent many months away from the studio. When she returned she had grown to almost six foot and Madame Rambert subsequently dismissed her from class for being too tall. Rambert encouraged her to go into teaching and she trained and became a distinguished teacher of ballet, registering with the Royal Academy of Dance
Royal Academy of Dance
The Royal Academy of Dance is an international dance education and training organization, and examination board that specialises in the teaching and technique of Ballet. The RAD was established in London, England in 1920 as the Association of Operatic Dancing of Great Britain, and received its...
.
Her early dance and music awards include:
- Champion Irish Stepdancer of England at the London Irish Step Dance Championship on 24 April 1931. Gold Medal
- Second Prize for solo war pipes at the Tailteann Games Croke Park, Dublin in 1932. Silver Medal
- 87 Marks for solo war pipes at a Scots Gathering and Highland Games at Morecambe and Heysham in LancashireLancashireLancashire is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in the North West of England. It takes its name from the city of Lancaster, and is sometimes known as the County of Lancaster. Although Lancaster is still considered to be the county town, Lancashire County Council is based in Preston...
on 15 July 1933 - First Prize for solo war pipes at Father Matthew Feis on 22 April 1934 in Cork.
Returning to Ireland
Her family returned to Mallow in 1933. In 1934 she set up her first ballet school there. She commuted to Cork regularly to give classes in Gregg Hall and Windsor School. After the death of her mother in 1940 she moved to a little studio in Patrick Street, Cork, where she would live for most of her professional career. In 1945 Moriarty met with composer Aloys FleischmannAloys Fleischmann
Aloys Fleischmann was an Irish composer and musicologist. In addition he wrote several books and articles on Irish music.-Life:...
. He wanted her to play warpipes in his new piece, Clare's Dragoons
Clare's Dragoons
The Clare's Regiment, later known as Clare's Dragoons, was initially named O'Brien's Regiment after its originator Daniel O'Brien, 3rd Viscount Clare...
, which led to a lifelong artistic and personal relationship which would produce an original form of Irish ballet and music.
The Companies
Joan Moriarty set up her first ballet company in Cork in 1947. The Cork Ballet Company gave their first performance with a week of ballet in 1947 in the Opera House in Cork. This week, known locally as Ballet Week, became an annual event in Cork and was an integral part of the social calendar. This company became the amateur company in later years as the two professional companies were set up. The first of these professional companies was theIrish Theater Ballet.This company performed between 1959 and 1964 when the Arts Council of Ireland
Arts Council of Ireland
The Arts Council of Ireland was founded in 1951 by the Government of Ireland to encourage interest in Irish art and channel to funding from the state to Irish artists and arts organisations...
did not renew the funding and the company subsequently went into administration. However, not to be put off by such a minor inconvenience, Moriarty lobbied for funding for another company and in 1973 she set up the Irish National Ballet. This company performed until 1985 when, to much personal disappointment, the Arts Council under directives from a commissioned report known as the Brinson Report, terminated the grant and effectively forced the company to collapse. She would continue to work with the Cork Ballet Company, bringing
ballet to remote parts of Ireland until her death.
Towards A New Ballet Style
Many of Moriarty's ballets have Irish themes and her greatest achievements included fusing the folk style of Irish dance and that of classical ballet. It must be noted that this was fifty years before the RiverdanceRiverdance
Riverdance is a theatrical show consisting of traditional Irish stepdancing, notable for its rapid leg movements while body and arms are kept largely stationary. It originated as an interval performance during the 1994 Eurovision Song Contest, a moment that is still considered a significant...
phenomenon. International success came with The Playboy of the Western World
The Playboy of the Western World
The Playboy of the Western World is a three-act play written by Irish playwright John Millington Synge and first performed at the Abbey Theatre, Dublin, on January 26, 1907. It is set in Michael James Flaherty's public house in County Mayo during the early 1900s...
with music by The Chieftains
The Chieftains
The Chieftains are a Grammy-winning Irish musical group founded in 1962, best known for being one of the first bands to make Irish traditional music popular around the world.-Name:...
. This was performed in Sadlers Wells and in New York to critical acclaim and was an attempt to fuse folk style and ballet with a score of traditional Irish music.
Cork Ballet Company Folk Dance Group
In the late 1960s JDM choreographed 13 one act folk ballets for the RTÉ television programme An Damhsa. The group she used was the newly formed Folk Dance Group, part of the Cork Ballet Company. The series of programme's attempted to show how one could fuse the two styles together and the final programme was a full ballet en pointe to Hamilton HartyHamilton Harty
Sir Hamilton Harty was an Irish and British composer, conductor, pianist and organist. In his capacity as a conductor, he was particularly noted as an interpreter of the music of Berlioz and he was much respected as a piano accompanist of exceptional prowess...
An Irish Symphony called The Seal Woman. Other works performed included the folk ballet The Planting Stick with music by her long term collaborator Aloys Fleischmann
Aloys Fleischmann
Aloys Fleischmann was an Irish composer and musicologist. In addition he wrote several books and articles on Irish music.-Life:...
. This ballet has enjoyed a resurgence of interest in the new millennium and although the original steps are long gone some new choreographers are setting the music using folk style dance to tell the tale of The Planting Stick.
Collaboration
Between Moriarty and Fleischmann, four ballets were produced (The Golden Bell of Ko, Macha Ruadh, An Coitin Dearg, The Táin) and one folk ballet (The Planting Stick). Four out of five of these works draw on Irish mythology and legend and the dance and music reflects this influence.This influence was in keeping with Moriarty and Fleischmann's ideas of a uniquely Irish form of ballet and music. Both the music and dance are fusions of traditional Irish elements and the classical forms of both disciplines. In this respect, the ballet The Táin was to prove their greatest collaboration and received rave reviews at its premiere at the Gaiety Theatre, Dublin on 6 October 1981, although this work has never been performed since.