The Auckland Caledonian Dancing Society
Fostering and encouraging young dance talent
The Auckland Caledonian Dancing Society Incorporated was registered as a charity in June 2008.
Its purpose is to foster interest in dancing and its various forms, and to encourage young talent to develop to its full potential.
The Society holds an annual 10 day dance festival in Auckland that sees dancers from all over the country competing together.
But the story didn’t begin in 2008. The Society was started by May Blackman, known to many as Aunty May.
Mrs Blackman had a sewing shop and factory along Karangahape Road and she banded together as many dancing mothers as she could, from the various dancing studios in Auckland, to sew clothes, bake cakes, etc for a fair to raise money to start the society.
The fair was held in the Auckland Town Hall and the hireage cost 200 pounds
that was borrowed from Arthur Moselen (husband of a dancing mother).
When the first 200 pounds was made on the day of the fair, this money was repaid immediately.
From this the first dancing festival was held in 1950, and has been held every year since,
except when there were exceptional circumstances due to COVID19.
The Society was originally for Scottish highland dancing but over time tap, ballet, jazz, and hip hop have been introduced. Since its inception the Auckland Caledonian Dancing Society competition has gained a reputation for excellence in the adjudicators they engage and the dancers they attract and it remains one of the strongest and well attended in New Zealand’s dance competition calendar.
The Society looks forward to welcoming everyone to their competition
Here are some (but not all) of the people that helped during the initial drive and in the early years:
- Eileen McGonagle (past President),
- Maree McKain,
- Daisy Allan,
- Norma Trounson (past Secretary and also a life member of the Society up to her death in 2004),
- Alice Dawson,
- Kath Osborne,
- Joyce Moselen,
- Mr Charlie Wilkie and his wife
- (Mr Wilkie was also a life member)
- Mr Sandham,
- Mr George Wakeley,
- Mr Brian McDonald
- (piper and highland judge),
- Mr Jack Allan
- Joyce Cain,
- Adele Purdom,
- Da Kapita,
- Pat McMinn,
- Pat Over,
- Gwyneth McNaughton,
