| Collecting Strand | National Resource Centre for Dance |
| Level | Fonds |
| Ref No | BMJ |
| Title | Betty Meredith-Jones Archive |
| Date | 1902-1993 |
| Extent | 9 files, 91 photographs, 10 videotapes, 5 films, 13 audiotapes, 76 books, 1 theatre programme |
| Name of Creator | Jones; Betty Meredith- (1908-1996); dance teacher and therapist |
| Description | The collection comprises the personal archive of the dance educator and therapist Betty Meredith-Jones. Meredith-Jones' papers include notes for teaching sessions, notes on Laban movement theories, documents on the Berkeley Project, Meredith-Jones's curriculum vitae, articles on ageing and sport/movement, and notes on 'period dances'. The photographs within the archive show Meredith-Jones teaching movement sessions with young children and the elderly, demonstrating correct and incorrect deportment, dancing in a studio, lecturing to students, and posing in 'period' dresses. The videos and films contain Meredith-Jones's teaching sessions with people with Parkinson's and the over-60s. The audio cassettes include recordings of Meredith-Jones teaching movement sessions and speaking about movement therapy and ageing. The books within the archive concern movement education, Laban movement principles, and 'national dance styles' from around the world. |
| Arrangement | Material arranged at time of cataloguing according to the format-based classification scheme which was then in use by the National Resource Centre for Dance. |
| Administrative History | Betty Meredith-Jones (1908-1996) was a key exponent of Laban-based movement education and therapy. From 1927 to 1930 she studied for a diploma at Chelsea College of Physical Education, and then went on to teach movement workshops in dance, sports and gymnastics in schools, the social services and various recreational organisations. In 1941 she undertook an intensive couse of study in Laban movement techniques under the guidance of Laban himself and Lisa Ullmann. The following year she began teaching at Homerton Training College for Teachers, Cambridge, while continuing to teach freelance workshops based on Laban movement principles.
In 1952 Meredith-Jones moved to the United States where she took up a post at the University of California, Berkeley. During her time in America she toured widely, giving master classes and running free-lance workshops and summer schools. In addition to working with trainee teachers, Meredith-Jones was involved with a wide variety of 'client groups' including children with autism and women affected by schizophrenia. From 1956 to 1958 she did a BA in Psychology and an MA in Education at Columbia University Teacher's College.
Meredith-Jones spent her remaining working life in New York, and it was during this period that she became particularly involved with Parkinson's patients and the philosophies of Jungian analysis. She ran movement sessions both for patients with Parkinson's disease and for other professionals in the field. In 1973, she left New York to retire to Wales, where she continued to teach and lecture in retirement. |
| Language | English |
| Related Material | See also the following archives held by Archives and Special Collections, University of Surrey:
- Rudolf Laban Archive [collection reference: L];
- Lisa Ullmann Archive [collection reference: LU];
- Joan Russell Archive [collection reference: JR];
- Audrey Wethered and Chloë Gardner Archive [collection reference: AW];
- Educational Dance-Drama Theatre Archive [collection reference: ET]. |
| Custodial History | The archive collection was generated by Betty Meredith-Jones over the course of her life and career. Following Meredith-Jones' death, the bulk of the archive was deposited with the National Resource Centre for Dance at the University of Surrey. Three further deposits of books and audio-visual material belonging to Meredith-Jones were made by Gerard Bagley the following year. |