About
“The international bar for breathtaking transformation is set by Australia’s amazing Nicola Gunn, a physical theatre artist of eerie originality and prodigious dexterity. No one does what Gunn does.”
EDMONTON JOURNAL
“Nicola Gunn’s ability is downright prodigious.”
TORONTO EYE
“I would watch Nicola Gunn shell peas.” THE AGE MAGAZINE
Nicola Gunn is an actor and theatre-maker who creates work that is visually and physically dynamic. She conjures worlds for the audience to enter that are elegantly twisted, surreal and eccentric and powered by an intense and meticulous physicality. She aspires to create strong narratives that are both complex and accessible, hilarious and tragic. Nicola has forged a reputation for presenting a unique style of solo performance with absurdist humour, tenderness and imagination that has captured the delight of audiences across Canada, the US, Australia and New Zealand. Her work is mesmerizing, provocative, and ridiculous.
Nicola studied Small Companies and Community Theatre at Swinburne University before focusing her studies in Acting at the Victorian College of the Arts. Nicola has since gone on to concentrate her training in the physical language of Etienne Decroux and Embodiment work developed by master teacher and practitioner Leisa Shelton. She has created several tragic comic one-person performances – The Elephant Club (2002), Tyrannous Rex (2003) and An Unfortunate Woman (2005) – which have toured extensively throughout Canada, the US and Australia. An Unfortunate Woman had sell-out seasons and won critical acclaim at the 2006 Adelaide Fringe Festival and 2006 Melbourne and Wellington International Comedy Festivals. It has been invited to the UNO Festival in Victoria, Canada and the World Busker Festival in Christchurch, NZ. Other acting credits include An Oration of Filth directed by Emma Valente for the Next Wave Festival; Can’t Leave Tomorrow Alone directed by Emma Valente at Theatreworks; Pan directed by Joseph Crouch for Company B’s B Sharp programme (at the Seymour Centre, Sydney); and Marcel and Albertine at the Stork Hotel directed by Emma Valente.
Nicola is available to teach physical theatre and performance making workshops.
AWARDS and NOMINATIONS
- 2006 – Green Room Award Best Performance Nomination – An Unfortunate Woman
- 2003 – Montreal Fringe Festival Centaur Best Play Award First Runner-Up – Tyrannous Rex
- 2002 – Montreal Fringe Festival Centaur Best Play Award – The Elephant Club