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Jennifer
Ward-Lealand
Founder, Producer, Actor
Since
she first trod the boards at the age of seven, Jennifer has become
one of New Zealand’s leading actresses. In 1982, she trained
at Auckland’s influential Theatre Corporate, joining the
main company soon after and appearing in plays including Hedda
Gabler, The Trial, Top Girls, and King
Lear.
Since
then, she has worked extensively in theatre, film, TV, musical
and radio. Theatre performances include Carousel, Agnes
of God, Nana, The Irving Berlin Show (Mercury
Theatre), Cabaret, Assassins (Watershed), Breaking
the Silence, The Real Thing, Side By Side by
Sondheim (Centrepoint Theatre), The Threepenny Opera
(Downstage Theatre), Tell Me On a Sunday (Auckland Philharmonia
Orchestra), Into the Woods, The Herbal Bed,
The Graduate, The Bach (Auckland Theatre Company),
and Pinter’s Old Times (Potent Pause Productions).
In
1989/90, she toured NZ and internationally with The Front Lawn,
performing to sell-out houses. In the mid 90s she moved to Australia
to appear in the comedy TV series Full Frontal and played
Viola in the Adelaide International Festival’s production
of Twelfth Night.
Jennifer’s
film work includes The Footstep Man, Desperate Remedies,
The Ugly, Fracture, Linda’s Body
and The Painted Lady. Television includes Full Frontal,
Xena: Warrior Princess, Hercules: The Legendary Journeys,
Shortland St., and Duggan.
Awards
include Best Actress (Sitges, Spain) for Desperate Remedies;
Best Actress (GOFTA, NZ) for Danny and Raewyn; Best Theatrical
Performer (NZ Entertainment Awards), and The Evening Standard
Best Actress Award for Breaking the Silence (Centrepoint
Theatre).
Jennifer’s directing credits includes include Sister
Wonder Woman, Arohaotearoa (Silo), Let Yourself
Go (which she also devised), Big River and By
Thunder for Unitec School of Performing and Screen Arts,
Handel’s Acis and Galatea for NBR New Zealand Opera;
assistant director (to Michael Hurst) on Macbeth for
The Large Group and A Christmas Carol for Auckland Theatre
Company.
In
2003, Jennifer played Marlene Dietrich in the Potent Pause Production
of Marlene to sell-out houses in Auckland .She also devised
and performed a one-woman cabaret Jennifer Ward-Lealand Sings
Marlene for the AK03 Festival Club and Hamilton Gardens Festival
(2004).
2005
sees Jennifer performing in a return season of The Bach
(ATC) and directing Sondheim’s Merrily We Roll Along
(Silo).
Jennifer's
official website is at www.jenniferwardlealand.com.
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