Annie Stainer | |
|---|---|
 in the 1970s | |
| Born | 1945 (1945) |
| Died | 2025 (aged 79–80) |
| Occupation | Performance artist |
Annie Stainer (29 September 1945 - 31 May 2025[1]) was an English mime, clown, and dancer.
Career
Stainer was brought up in Mere in Wiltshire where parents were bakers, Edna and Ron. She had been born in Shaftesbury and she attended Shaftesbury grammar school.She took ballet classes as a child, where her teacher criticised her for her "broken arms." In 1967, she went to the University of Warwick to study French. There she met her collaborator and husband Reg Bolton.[1] She went on to study at the London School of Contemporary Dance in 1968 before studying mime with Etienne Decroux completing in 1971.[1]
In 1972, Stainer danced with David Bowie. His hit "John, I'm Only Dancing" includes the line "Well, Annie's pretty neat, she always eats her meat." The line is assigned to her as she appeared in the accompanying video.[2]
Stainer's work included playing the albatross in The Rime of the Ancient Mariner in 1977 which was awarded a Fringe First award in Edinburgh. She is best known for the Annie Stainer trilogy[3] which began with a 1973 performance based around the first wife of Adam who is said to be Lilith. The Legend of Lilith was performed in a cathedral in New York.[1]
In 1985, the family moved to Perth where Stainer and her husband worked for the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts. In 1988 she performed her complete trilogy in Perth which consisted of The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, Moon from 1975, and the final piece Changing Woman which was first performed in Glasgow in 1984. She was in Perth for six years as the Head of Movement.[1]
Stainer's husband and collaborator Reg Bolton died in 2006. She and their two children, Jo and Sophie survived him.[4] She died in 2025 while telling her doctors who were treating her of the work she had planned for 2026.[2][1]
References
- ^ a b c d e f Grassi, Nathan Peter (July 4, 2025). "Annie Stainer obituary". The Guardian.
- ^ a b "Annie Stainer obituary: dance and mime artist who performed with Bowie". www.thetimes.com. July 28, 2025.
- ^ "Annie Stainer, 79, Dies; Enigmatic Mime Who Performed With David Bowie". The New York Times. 2025-08-24. Retrieved 2025-08-26.
- ^ Glover, Tina (2006-07-25). "Reg Bolton". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2026-01-15.
External links
- Annie Stainer at IMDb
