Brian Macdonald (choreographer)

[2] His father Ian was Irish and worked at Dominion Glass Co. as a sales manager while his mother Mabel Lee was Scottish.

in English at McGill University when he began ballet classes with noted teachers Gerald Crevier and Elizabeth Leese.

Early on in his dance training Macdonald was inspired to study choreography, affected by the Ballets Russes rehearsal of Concerto Barocco by George Balanchine in Montreal.

[3] He choreographed Rose Latulippe in 1966, which was Canada's first evening-length ballet performance[4] and the first full-length colour production filmed by the Canadian Broadcasting Company.

He then moved on to become artistic director of Israel's Batsheva Dance Theatre from 1971–1972 and Les Grands Ballets Canadiens from 1974 to 1977, where he choreographed Tam Ti Delam in 1974 and Lignes et Pointes.

The dancers were covered in ash-looking makeup to reflect the appearance of survivors fleeing the World Trade Center buildings.

Hugh Winsor from The Globe and Mail, who was present at the inaugural performance, wrote that the audience gave the show "an extended standing ovation.

"[9] Robert Harris of The Globe and Mail commented that the show struggled to overcome issues of racism and prejudice that exist in the opera.

[4] Some of his students have included Johnny Wright, the male lead in the West End production of Dirty Dancing, and Crystal Pite.