Building The Ballet

1960s

1962: The Australian Ballet is established as Australia’s first permanent national ballet company, with Peggy van Praagh appointed as founding Artistic Director.

No sooner had our founding members gathered for the first time in 1962 as The Australian Ballet was born, than the seeds of philanthropy were sown.

“Ripples of excitement were felt through the community and, before long, people were donating whatever they could – pounds, shillings and pence, in the earliest days – to be associated with Australia’s first permanent national ballet company,” explains Philanthropy Director Kenneth Watkins.

“In time, and underpinned by a succession of strong leaders and responsible Boards and Chairs, philanthropy has grown to be the company’s second-largest revenue stream and laid down a solid foundation that allows us to be bold, be brave and always go that extra mile.”

Here, we look at the role philanthropy has played throughout the history of The Australian Ballet, the moments and milestones made possible by generations of giving, and the impact our community has had on the company we know and love today.

1964: The Australian Ballet School opens its doors to students, with Margaret Scott as founding Director of the school.

1966: The Australian Ballet Society, Victoria (known today as The Ballet Society, VIC) is founded and commences support of both organisations.

1970s

1973: The Australian Ballet Friends, New South Wales (now known as The Ballet Society, NSW) is founded and starts fundraising for The Australian Ballet and The Australian Ballet School.

1973: Rudolph Nureyev and Robert Helpmann’s movie of Don Quixote, enabled by The Australian Ballet’s community, is filmed in an aircraft hangar outside of Melbourne.

1978: With proceeds of the company’s 1977 international tour, The Australian Ballet purchases land in Southbank, Melbourne to build a new home for the company.

1980s

1981: The Dancers Strike takes place, placing the future of the company at risk.

1987: The Silver Jubilee capital campaign begins to raise funds to build a new six-storey purpose-built ballet centre in Southbank.

1988: James and Diana Ramsay make a gift to support the company’s Silver Jubilee tour to London. On the tour, The Australian Ballet hosts a fundraising gala at the Royal Opera House in the presence of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II.

1988: The Australian Ballet moves to The Australian Ballet Centre, its new purpose-built home in Southbank.

1989: The Australian Ballet Club starts, with Lady Potter as President.

1990s

1990: The Planned Giving program is established to build a stable foundation for the company via gifts in wills.

1992: The Australian Ballet Friends, South Australia (now known as The Ballet Society, SA) is founded and begins fundraising for The Australian Ballet and The Australian Ballet School.

1994: The Australian Ballet’s Annual Giving program emerges from The Australian Ballet Club.

1997: The company receives its first major estate from Planned Giving.

1999: The Australian Ballet receives its first major gift of $500,000 from Robert and Elizabeth Albert to establish The Robert and Elizabeth Albert Music Fund.

2000s

2004: Robert and Elizabeth Albert make a second $500,000 contribution to the company towards The Robert and Elizabeth Albert Music Fund.

2005: The company receives its first $1 million gift from Kenneth Reed for an endowment to support the creation of new ballets.

2005: The International Touring Fund is established by Frances Gerard with a $1 million pledge after she experiences the opening night of Graeme Murphy’s Swan Lake at the London Coliseum.

2008: Dancer-endowed positions commence: ballet lovers are invited to provide valuable support that will sustain a principal dancer’s position in perpetuity.

2010s

2010: A capital campaign gets underway, raising funds to maintain and upgrade The Australian Ballet Centre, build a new production centre and support the strategic priorities of the company. Donations and bequest notifications total $54 million, including a transformative gift of $8 million from The Ian Potter Foundation –the largest in the company’s history. The Primrose Potter Australian Ballet Centre is named in honour of Lady Potter’s long involvement with the company.

2011: The Foundation Board is formed to expand and enrich the support network around the company.

2011: The Australian Ballet’s Production Centre is opened, supported by philanthropy.

2014: A fundraising campaign raises $1.7 million for David McAllister’s new production of The Sleeping Beauty.

2015: A fundraising campaign raises $1 million to create Storytime Ballet – annual seasons for young children.

2015: The Ballet Ambassador program is established by Sarah Murdoch to welcome the next generation of philanthropists into the company.

2016: Philanthropy enables the Raise the Roof campaign to raise funds for the redevelopment of The Primrose Potter Australian Ballet Centre.

2016: The Regional Touring Fund is created to make Australia’s national ballet company accessible to all by spreading the joy of dance across the nation, on and off the stage.

2017: A fundraising campaign raises $1.4 million for Lucas Jervies’ new production of Spartacus.

2020s

2020: Live performance is interrupted for two years, due to the global COVID-19 pandemic. Thousands of devoted audience members generously donate the value of their tickets to cancelled performances in 2020 and 2021, to help sustain the company.

2021: The Global Ambassador Network is established to provide support for the company’s activities outside of Australia.

2021: The David Hallberg Fund is endowed by Lady Potter and a small group of patrons to empower The Australian Ballet’s eighth Artistic Director to realise his vision for the company, without compromise. Don Quixote and Jewels (both presented in Season 2023) are made possible by the fund.

2021: Kunstkamer, one of the most ambitious contemporary dance productions ever to appear as part of the company’s repertoire, is enabled by the generosity of patrons.

2021: A fundraising campaign for David Hallberg’s 60th anniversary reimagining of Swan Lake generates a wave of support from nearly 1,000 members of the community, who fully fund the production.

2022: The Australian Ballet Society, VIC and The Australian Ballet Friends, NSW and SA adopt the umbrella term of The Ballet Society.

2023: The Australian Ballet celebrates its 60th anniversary with a season featuring three full-length ballets funded by philanthropy.