Isabella Noemi Pappas (born 21 August 2002) is an actress based in London. She began her career on the London stage, earning

Laurence Olivier Laurence Kerr Olivier, Baron Olivier ( ; 22 May 1907 – 11 July 1989) was an English actor and director. He and his contemporaries Ralph Richardson and John Gielgud made up a trio of male actors who dominated the British stage of the m ...

and

WhatsOnStage Award The WhatsOnStage Awards (WOS Awards), formerly known as the Theatregoers' Choice Awards, are organised by the theatre website WhatsOnStage.com. The awards celebrate outstanding achievements in UK theatre, with categories covering both regional p ...

nominations. On television, she is known for her roles in the ITV series '' Finding Alice'' (2021) and the

Disney Channel Disney Channel is an American pay television television channel, channel that serves as the flagship (broadcasting), flagship property of Disney Branded Television, a unit of the Disney Entertainment business segment of the Walt Disney Company ...

series '' The Villains of Valley View'' (2022–23).

Early life

Pappas was born in northern

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

and spent her early childhood on a farm. Her father is a pilot, and her mother is an American autism specialist. She also has French and Greek heritage. Pappas attended an international school and lived in

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

for two years for her mother's work. The family settled in

Chiswick Chiswick ( ) is a district in West London, split between the London Borough of Hounslow, London Boroughs of Hounslow and London Borough of Ealing, Ealing. It contains Hogarth's House, the former residence of the 18th-century English artist Wi ...

, West London when Pappas was 11. She attended

Sylvia Young Theatre School Sylvia Young Theatre School is an independent school in Marble Arch, London, England. It is a specialist performing arts school named after its founder and principal, Sylvia Young OBE. Outline The Sylvia Young Theatre School was founded in 19 ...

and later Arts Educational School (ArtsEd) for sixth form, studying Drama and English Literature. She also took classes at the British Theatre Academy and participated in Michael Xavier's MX Masterclass.

Career

Upon moving to the city at 11 years old, Pappas made her London stage debut in the 2014 production of '' The Nether'' at the

Royal Court Theatre The Royal Court Theatre, at different times known as the Court Theatre, the New Chelsea Theatre, and the Belgravia Theatre, is a West End theatre#London's non-commercial theatres, non-commercial theatre in Sloane Square, London, England, opene ...

in the role of Iris, which she shared with Zoe Brough. The production moved to the

Duke of York's Theatre The Duke of York's Theatre is a West End theatre in St Martin's Lane, in the City of Westminster, London. It was built for Frank Wyatt and his wife, Violet Melnotte, who retained ownership of the theatre until her death in 1935. Designed by ...

on the West End in 2015. Pappas, Brough, Jaime Adler, and Perdita Hibbins were jointly nominated for Best Supporting Actress at the 2015 Laurence Olivier Awards for their performances. Pappas then starred as the titular '' Annie!'' on the show's 2015 tour around the UK. She made her television debut as Sarah Waingrow in the 2016 ITV crime drama miniseries ''

Paranoid Paranoia is an instinct or thought process that is believed to be heavily influenced by anxiety, suspicion, or fear, often to the point of delusion and irrationality. Paranoid thinking typically includes persecutory beliefs, or beliefs of con ...

''. She played Nina in the Stockwell Playhouse production of ''

In the Heights ''In the Heights'' is a musical with concept, music, and lyrics by Lin-Manuel Miranda and a book by Quiara Alegría Hudes. The story is a romance as well as a celebration of community, culture, and aspirations. It is set over the course of thr ...

'' in 2017. This was followed in 2018 by roles in '' 13'' at Porthcurno's

Minack Theatre The Minack Theatre () is an open-air theatre, constructed above a gully with a rocky granite outcrop jutting into the sea. The theatre is at Porthcurno, from Land's End in Cornwall, England.Ordnance Survey: Landranger map sheet 203 ''Land's En ...

, the

Theatre Royal Stratford East Stratford East (formerly known as Theatre Royal Stratford East) is a 460 seat Victorian producing theatre in Stratford in the London Borough of Newham. Since 1953, it has been the home of the Theatre Workshop company, famously associated with di ...

's ''Terror at The Sweetshop'', and '' Bring It On: The Musical'' at

Southwark Playhouse Southwark Playhouse is a theatre in London with two venues, both located between Borough and Elephant and Castle tube stations. History The Southwark Playhouse Theatre Company was founded in 1993 by Juliet Alderdice and Tom Wilson. They ident ...

. For her performance as Cassidy Kramer-Lafayette in the 2019 run of the play '' Appropriate'' at the

Donmar Warehouse The Donmar Warehouse is a 251-seat, not-for-profit Off-West End theatre in Covent Garden, London, England. It first opened on 18 July 1977. Sam Mendes, Michael Grandage, Josie Rourke and Michael Longhurst have all served as artistic direc ...

, Pappas was nominated for the

for Best Supporting Actress in a Play. She returned to television with guest appearances in the

CBBC CBBC is a British free-to-air Public service broadcasting in the United Kingdom, public broadcast children's television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It is also the brand used for all BBC content for children aged 6 to 12. Its sister c ...

musical '' Almost Never'' in 2019 and the

Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by Channel Four Television Corporation. It is state-owned enterprise, publicly owned but, unlike the BBC, it receives no public funding and is funded en ...

comedy-drama ''

Home A home, or domicile, is a space used as a permanent or semi-permanent residence for one or more human occupants, and sometimes various companion animals. Homes provide sheltered spaces, for instance rooms, where domestic activity can be p ...

'' in 2020. Pappas landed her first main television role as Charlotte Walsh, the daughter of

Keeley Hawes Clare Julia Keeley Hawes (born 10 February 1976) is an English actress. After beginning her career in a number of literary adaptations, including '' Our Mutual Friend'' (1998) and '' Tipping the Velvet'' (2002), Hawes rose to fame for her portray ...

' titular character, in the 2021 ITV comedy-drama '' Finding Alice''. She was then cast in a Disney pilot (working titles included ''Amy from Amarillo'' and ''Meet the Mayhems''), which became '' The Villains of Valley View'' and premiered in 2022 on

and

Disney+ The Walt Disney Company, commonly referred to as simply Disney, is an American multinational mass media and entertainment industry, entertainment conglomerate (company), conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios (Burbank), Walt Di ...

. In 2023, Pappas was cast as Joyce Maldonado (later Byers) in the ''

Stranger Things ''Stranger Things'' is an American television series created by the Duffer brothers, Duffer Brothers for Netflix. Produced by Monkey Massacre Productions and 21 Laps Entertainment, the Stranger Things season 1, first season was released on N ...

'' prequel stage play '' Stranger Things: The First Shadow'', which will premiere on 17 November 2023 at the Phoenix Theatre in London. Pappas also played the first victim of

Jimmy Savile Sir James Wilson Vincent Savile (; 31 October 1926 – 29 October 2011) was an English media personality and DJ. He was known for his eccentric image, charitable work, and hosting the BBC shows ''Top of the Pops'' and ''Jim'll Fix It''. A ...

in an episode of the

BBC One BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's oldest and flagship channel, and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television b ...

miniseries '' The Reckoning''. She has a role in the upcoming film ''Beach Boys''.

Filmography

Stage

Awards and nominations

References

External links

*
Isabella Pappas
at Spotlight {{DEFAULTSORT:Pappas, Isabella Living people 2002 births Actresses from London Alumni of the Sylvia Young Theatre School Actors educated at the Arts Educational Schools Actors from the London Borough of Hounslow People from Chiswick