Dawn Lindberg
Dawn Lindberg (1945-2020) was a singer, actress, director and theatre entrepreneur.
Contents
Biography
Born Dawn Silver in Durban on 19 April 1945, educated at Parktown Girls High and was an AFS Scholar in Detroit, USA (1963-4), then obtained a BA (Fine Arts) University of the Witwatersrand; Diploma Etching (Urbino, Italy), Stage Design (Salzburg).
Dawn met and married Des Lindberg. They began performing together as Des and Dawn Lindberg. They collaborated on a number of projects, under the banners of Folk on Trek Productions, The Soirée Society and CAT Productions.
For further information on these projects, see the entry Des and Dawn.
For Des Lindberg's biographical and career information, see the individual entry under Des Lindberg.
Besides her own work as producer (she directed and designed most of the corporate and stage productions for CAT Productions), she also held many management positions in the industry at various times, including being secretary and treasurer of the Theatre Managements of South Africa (TMSA) and convenor/Executive Director of the Naledi Awards.
She was at one time President of Soroptimists International (the Highveld branch), produced the Double Gold: "Fat Off" fitness tape, co-authored: How Did I Begin? (a book on the facts of life for kids) and delivered motivational talks on topics such as Every Night is an Opening Night and Unfreeze Your Speaking Assets.
The couple had two sons, Joshua and Adam.
Dawn died of a COVID-19 related illness on Monday 7 December 2020 .
Contribution to SA theatre, film, media and/or performance
As theatre producer
The Lindbergs produced a number of theatre productions.
For further information on these, see Des and Dawn.
As actor
Dawn appeared in a number of productions.
Des and Dawn Lindberg joined Robert Kirby in his show 8 Birds at the Labia Theatre in 1970. They helped convert the Carlton Cinema in Von Weilligh Street into a small theatre which opened with Birds of a Feather(a revised version of 8 Birds), also about 1970.
She had the lead role in I'm Getting My Act Together and Taking It On The Road (1980-1981).
Together with Des, they performed Sex, Tango and Everything Else in the State Theatre Arena (2001).
As director
Dawn directed a number of productions, including Godspell (1973 and several subsequent productions), Pippin (1975), The Shrew, The Black Mikado, Gloo Joo, The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas (1979), Lennon (1981).
She directed the PACT production of Every Good Boy Deserves Favour which was a collaboration of Tom Stoppard’s text Every Good Boy and André Previn’s music starring Danny Keogh, Michael McCabe, Michael Richard and Lynne White in 1986. It won the Vita Award for best production.
As choreographer and designer
She was contracted in 1965 by Taubie Kushlick, the producer, to do choreography for The Wizard of Oz, her Children's Theatre production, while Des Lindberg was to write extra music and lyrics. Keith Blundell was the musical director, Nina Campbell-Quine did décor, while Heather MacDonald-Rouse did costumes. It was staged at the Wits Great Hall in 1965.
She also choreographed and designed their production of Pippin in 1975.
The Lindberg’s presented When I Was a Girl I Used to Scream and Shout, directed by Dawn at the Adcock-Ingram Auditorium in July 1987. Together with PACT the Lindberg’s staged King Afrika at the Standard Bank Arena in 1988.
They also performed Sex, Tango and Everything Else in the State Theatre Arena in 2001 (Written by Dawn Lindberg, Choreography by Adéle Blank and Musical Direction by Dave Polecutt).
Awards, etc,
She was presented with the Women: The Real Architects of Society Awards (WRASA) Drama Excellence Award to acknowledge and honour her 51 years in theatre and show business in 2017.
Sources
SACD 1973; 1974; 1975/76; 1977/78; 1979/80; 1981/82.
Pretoria News, 11 April 2001.
Herman Lategan. 2020. Tot einde hartstogtelik oor teater em kunste, Rapport Weekliks, 13 Desember, 2020: p.2.
ESAT Bibliography Tra-Tz|Tucker]], 1997.
Various entries in the NELM catalogue.
Schwartz, 1988, De Beer, 1995, Joyce, 1999.
www.jozilife.co.za/theatre/dawn-lindberg/
https://ewn.co.za/2020/12/08/naledi-awards-founder-dawn-lindberg-dies-of-covid-19-related-illness
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