Rene Almond
British-born Canadian dancer, actress and educator
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Irene Mulvany-Gray Almond (9 August 1894 – 13 January 1972), known as Rene Almond, was a British-born Canadian dancer, actress, and educator.
9 August 1894
Rene Almond | |
|---|---|
Irene Mulvany-Gray from a 1927 Australian publication. | |
| Born | Irene Clarice Mulvany-Gray 9 August 1894 Brentwood, Essex, England |
| Died | 13 January 1972 (aged 77) |
| Occupations | dancer, dance educator, actress, mime |
| Years active | 1920s-1960s |
| Children | Paul Almond |
Early life
Irene Clarice Mulvany-Gray was born in Brentwood, Essex. She trained at the Ginner-Mawer School of Dance in England.[1][2] She also appeared on the London stage, with Sybil Thorndike.[3]
Career
Mulvany-Gray performed and taught dance and mime in Christchurch, New Zealand from 1924 to 1926,[4][5][6] and Sydney, Australia from 1927 to 1929.[7][8] In speaking to a group in Sydney in 1927, she explained that "The greatest asset of dancing is that, both mentally and physically, it is a natural form of expression, and for this reason gives great pleasure to the performer."[9]
She moved to Canada and was on the faculty of the Montreal Repertory Theatre's school. With her sister, she ran the Almond-Gray School of Dance, Drama, and Mime in the 1930s.[10][11][12] She taught mime and other theatre arts at workshops for children.[1] She also acted in stage and radio plays in Montreal, especially with the Trinity Players,[13] including the title role in Medea,[14] and supporting roles in Hay Fever by Noël Coward,[15] The Petrified Forest by Robert E. Sherwood,[16] and The Bridge by Joseph Schull.[17]
Her older sister Hilda Mulvany Gray was also a theatre professional, and they often lived, worked, taught, and traveled together.[18][19][20] Both sisters were active in the Montreal Play-Reading Club in the 1940s.[21][22]
Personal life
In 1927, Irene Gray married a Canadian clergyman and World War I veteran,[23] Eric Almond (1895-1953), in Australia.[24][25] Her son was Canadian-born filmmaker and writer Paul Almond (1931-2015).[26][27] In 1968, she and her sister traveled to London and Morocco;[28] in 1971, they traveled to Tangiers, Gibraltar, and Malta.[29] She died in 1972 at age 77. Her grave is next to her sister's, in Shigawake, Quebec.[30][31][32]
