Joan Gadsdon (original) (raw)

Joan Margaret Anne Gadsdon (23 April 1923—12 October 2003) was an Australian ballet dancer, actor and artist. She was one of the pioneers of early Australian ballet in the 1940s, performing with the newly established Kirsova and Borovansky ballet companies. After emigrating to Great Britain she achieved minor theatrical fame in 1953 in London by stepping in at the last moment to save the famous British stage musical The Boy Friend from almost certain oblivion. She continued to appear to some acclaim in the show in its West End run before retiring from the stage in 1959.