Esther Hannaford is an Australian singer and actor who has performed major roles in musical theatre in Australia. Her roles include Penny Pingleton in the original Australian cast of ''
Hairspray
Hairspray may refer to:
* Hair spray, a personal grooming product that keeps hair protected from humidity and wind
* ''Hairspray'' (1988 film), a film by John Waters
** ''Hairspray'' (1988 soundtrack), the film's soundtrack album
** ''Hairspray ...
'', for which she received a
Helpmann Award, Ann Darrow in ''
King Kong
King Kong is a fictional giant monster resembling a gorilla, who has appeared in various media since 1933. He has been dubbed The Eighth Wonder of the World, a phrase commonly used within the franchise. His first appearance was in the novelizat ...
'', and Carole King in ''
Beautiful
Beautiful, an adjective used to describe things as possessing beauty, may refer to:
Film and theater
* ''Beautiful'' (2000 film), an American film directed by Sally Field
* ''Beautiful'' (2008 film), a South Korean film directed by Juhn Jai-h ...
''.
Early life
Hannaford grew up in
Camberwell in the eastern suburbs of Melbourne. Her parents were a stay-at-home mother who later had her own clothing label and an electrician father who was a former
SAS officer. She is the third of five children.
She took dance lessons from the age of five. As a child, she performed in the 1993 Melbourne season of ''
Scrooge'', and also appeared on television talent show ''
New Faces
''New Faces'' is a British television talent show that aired in the 1970s and 1980s. It has been hosted by Leslie Crowther, Derek Hobson and Marti Caine. It was produced for the ITV network by ATV, and later by Central.
Original series: 197 ...
'' dancing with three of her siblings to a medley of "
Glory of Love" and "
Gonna Make You Sweat (Everybody Dance Now)
"Gonna Make You Sweat (Everybody Dance Now)" is a hit song by C+C Music Factory. It was released in late 1990 as the debut and lead single from their first album, ''Gonna Make You Sweat'' (1990). The song is sung by singer Martha Wash and rapper ...
".
Growing up, Hannaford's interest was in
contemporary dance, and she did not pursue singing seriously until after high school. She deferred a place in a contemporary dance course to study musical theatre.
Career
Hannaford's early roles include ''
And the World Goes 'Round'' at
Chapel Off Chapel
Chapel Off Chapel is a theatre venue in Prahran, Melbourne. Located near Chapel Street and opened in 1995, the venue consists of the 255-seat Chapel Theatre, the 150-seat Chapel Loft and a visual arts gallery.
Chapel Off Chapel is particularly ...
, ''
Hair'' and ''
Mame
MAME (formerly an acronym of Multiple Arcade Machine Emulator) is a free and open-source emulator designed to recreate the hardware of arcade game systems in software on modern personal computers and other platforms. Its intention is to preserve ...
'' for
The Production Company
The Production Company was an Australian not-for-profit theatre company that staged a series of usually three musicals at the Arts Centre Melbourne each year, until its closure in 2020.
It was launched in 1999 by Jeanne Pratt AC with the goal o ...
, Lisa in the Australasian tour of ''
Mamma Mia!'', multiple roles in Dean Bryant and Mathew Frank's ''Virgins'' in Melbourne and for the
New York Musical Theatre Festival
The New York Musical Festival (NYMF) was an annual three-week summer festival that operated from 2004 to 2019. It presented more than 30 new musicals a year in New York City's midtown theater district. More than half were chosen by leading theate ...
, ''Eurobeat - Almost Eurovision'', and as a vocalist for Australian and international tours of ''
Burn the Floor''.
In 2009, she performed as Polly Brown in ''
The Boyfriend'' for The Production Company, and in new Australian musicals ''
Metro Street'' for the
State Theatre Company of South Australia
The State Theatre Company of South Australia (STCSA), branded State Theatre Company South Australia, formerly the South Australian Theatre Company (SATC), is South Australia's leading professional theatre company, and a statutory corporation. I ...
and ''
Once We Lived Here
''Once We Lived Here'' is an Australian musical with book and lyrics by Dean Bryant and music by Mathew Frank.
It concerns a farming family struggling to hold onto their sheep station
A sheep station is a large property ( station, the equ ...
'' at
fortyfivedownstairs. She also performed with independent theatre company Four Larks in ''Orpheus'' and ''The Plague Dances'' (with
Malthouse Theatre
Malthouse Theatre is the resident theatre company of The Malthouse building in Southbank, part of the Melbourne Arts Precinct. In the 1980s it was known as the Playbox Theatre Company and was housed in the Playbox Theatre in Melbourne's CBD.
A ...
).
Hannaford received wide recognition as Penny Pingleton in the original Australian production of ''Hairspray'' in 2011. She then originated the role of Ann Darrow in
Global Creatures' big-budget musical ''King Kong'' at the
Regent Theatre, Melbourne
The Regent Theatre is an historic former picture palace built in 1929, closed in 1970, and restored and reopened in 1996 as a live theatre in Collins Street, in the city of Melbourne, Australia. It is one of six city theatres collectively kno ...
in 2013.
In 2014 and 2015, she performed in a revival of
Nick Enright
Nicholas Paul Enright AM (22 December 1950 – 30 March 2003) was an Australian dramatist, playwright and theatre director.
Early life
Enright was born on 22 December 1950 to a prosperous professional Catholic family in East Maitland, New So ...
and Max Lambert's musical ''
Miracle City'' at the
Hayes Theatre
The Hayes Theatre is a 111-seat theatre specialising in music theatre and cabaret in Potts Point, Sydney, Australia. It is named after the Australian performer Nancye Hayes.
Hayes Theatre Co was established at the former Darlinghurst Theatre aft ...
in Sydney, ''The 3 Mikados'' with
Colin Lane and David Collins for the
Melbourne International Comedy Festival
The Melbourne International Comedy Festival (MICF) is the largest stand-alone comedy festival and the second-largest international comedy festival in the world. Established in 1987, it takes place annually in Melbourne over four weeks, typicall ...
, Billie Bendix in ''
Nice Work If You Can Get It'' for The Production Company, and Skurry in ''Last Man Standing'' for the
Melbourne Theatre Company
The Melbourne Theatre Company is a theatre company based in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Founded in 1953 as the Union Theatre Repertory Company at the Union Theatre at the University of Melbourne, it is the oldest professional theatre com ...
.
In 2016, Hannaford played the leading role of Audrey in an Australian national tour of ''
Little Shop of Horrors''.
Hannaford released an indie folk EP ''The Great Egret'' in February 2015. She also appears on the cast recordings of ''Virgins'', ''Once We Lived Here'' and ''Miracle City''.
She starred in the Australian production of ''
Beautiful: The Carole King Musical'', as Carole King. In 2019 she was featured in ABC comedy ''
Retrograde''.
Personal life
One of her brothers, Calvin Hannaford dances with
The Australian Ballet
The Australian Ballet is the largest classical ballet company in Australia. It was founded by J. C. Williamson Theatres Ltd and the Australian Elizabethan Theatre Trust in 1962, with the English-born dancer, teacher, repetiteur and direc ...
and the other, Ross Hannaford is a musical theatre performer.
Hannaford was diagnosed with Crohn's disease at the age of 18. It is the reason that she sings rather than dances.
It was referred to obliquely in ''Retrograde''.
Awards
Hannaford has received two national
Helpmann Awards and three Melbourne
Green Room Awards
The Green Room Awards are peer awards which recognise excellence in cabaret, dance, drama, fringe theatre, musical theatre and opera in Melbourne.
The awards were started in 1982 when Blair Edgar and Steven Tandy formed the Green Room Awards A ...
for her performances in musical theatre, and various other nominations.
*2018
Helpmann Award for Best Female Actor in a Musical, ''Beautiful''
*2013
Green Room Award for Female Artist in a Leading Role (Music Theatre), ''King Kong''
*2011
, ''Hairspray''
*2010 Green Room Award for Female Artist in a Featured Role (Music Theatre), ''Hairspray''
*2009 Green Room Award for Female Artist in a Leading Role (Music Theatre), ''Once We Lived Here''
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hannaford, Esther
Australian stage actresses
Australian women singers
Helpmann Award winners
Living people
Year of birth missing (living people)
People from Camberwell, Victoria
Singers from Melbourne
Actresses from Melbourne
People educated at Canterbury Girls' Secondary College