A tribute to Norman Douglas
We were saddened to hear of the death of Norman Douglas, a long-standing member and friend of The Work Room on Sunday 28 November. As choreographer, dancer, teacher and artistic director, Norman was a force in dance both here in Scotland and across Europe.
A gregarious Glaswegian, Norman loved to tell stories of his routes into dance via football, Govan shipyards, hairdressing and disco dancing. He discovered his love of contemporary dance after being persuaded along to classes and performing with PEG community dance group in Paisley. Norman then left Glasgow to train at London Contemporary Dance School and set out on a career that spanned performing internationally for choreographers including Robert North, Kate Flatt and Kim Brandstrup, rehearsal directing for Phoenix Dance Company, as Artistic Director of Liepzig Tanz Theatre, teaching across Europe and establishing his own company (The Ensemble and then Norman Douglas and Dancers).
Norman’s passion for dance was infectious, with an ambition for work of scale that would enthuse and excite audiences. The tours he produced often presented his own choreography together with commissions from other choreographers. He loved dancers and the breath-taking potential within the artform, as well as thrilling in collaboration with musicians, designers, theatre makers and visual artists.
Alongside working with professional dancers, Norman was equally enthusiastic about introducing people of all ages to dance. Having assisted Royston Maldoon on a number of large-scale participatory dance projects, he developed skills in enabling the dancer in everyone. He would regular lead dance projects in schools and encouraged older people to take their first steps in performing through Dance House Glasgow’s Still Dancing project.
Perhaps Norman’s last performance on a Scottish stage was at His Majesty’s Theatre in Aberdeen in the cast of 12 Dancers / Deliberance choreographed by Andy Howitt for Dance Live festival in 2012. While he achieved so much in dance, Norman did face challenges and he lived with the disappointment when opportunities and funding, did not always follow his aspirations.
In recent years, Norman’s deteriorating health has prevented him from working professionally. However, he had continued to dance, regularly participating in classes with Indepen-dance. One of his last creative projects was Norman’s Film, created with Scottish Ballet’s Creative learning team, with Norman and Hayley Earlam dancing together beautifully.
We send condolences from The Work Room to Norman's family and his close friends, especially Sheila, Annie and Wendy who have given him so much support in recent years. Much gratitude goes to the team at Hector House who have created a safe and caring home for Norman for the last few years.
Much gratitude also goes to Dance Professional Fund who provided some vital support to enable Norman to keep dancing through these challenges.
Dance on in Peace Norman.