Hunter actress to perform at Ensemble Theatre

Sofia Nolan is the first actor announced for the production, with her casting following an award-winning role in a play staged by Hunter School of the Performing Arts at the inaugural Sharp Short Theatre Festival for youth theatre productions at Parramatta last June.

Nolan won the best actress award playing a 7-year-old girl who decides to help her mother escape domestic violence in The Elephant in the Room.

The 10-minute play, written by Jordan Warner and directed by Taylor Reece, won the festival's best production award, and attracted the attention of ATYP staff members.

The Big Dry, which will be staged at the Ensemble’s Kirribilli theatre from June 4 to July 2, has Sofia Nolan playing Emily, a rebellious young girl who helps two young brothers living alone to survive in a future world where dust storms destroy houses and water supplies. She refuses to believe there is no hope for the future.

The play was adapted by Mark Kilmurry from the novel, written for early teen readers.

Sofia Nolan has won three CONDA nominations for performance by an actor aged under 18, most recently for her role as Wendy Darling in last year’s Hunter Drama reworking of Peter Pan.