Philip Chatfield (1927-2021). British dancer, teacher and coach

Philip Chatfield was born in Eastleigh, Hampshire, in 1927. He studied at the Elfin School of Dancing before getting a scholarship to the Sadler’s Wells Ballet School. He joined the Sadler’s Wells Ballet in 1943 and danced in a wide range of ballets. In 1944 he joined the Armed Forces and returned from service to re-join the Sadler’s Wells Ballet at Covent Garden in 1946. Chatfield toured extensively with the company and was a member of the famous tour to the United States of America in 1949.

Chatfield became a principal dancer in 1953. He married Rowena Jackson, a ballerina in the Sadler’s Wells (now Royal) Ballet in 1958 and retired from the stage in 1959 to New Zealand. In 1972 he became joint director of the National School of Ballet in Wellington and from 1975 until 1978 was artistic director the Royal New Zealand Ballet.

Philip Chatfield and Rowena Jackson retired again, this time to Australia where they made their home. They both continued to teach and coach. Philip Chatfield died in Brisbane, Australia, in 2021.