Lisa Hickey
Lisa Hickey
Actor
Lisa’s credits include working with La Boite, Toadshow, Acronym, Fractal, Grin and Tonic, That Production Company, The Curators’ Theatre, Growl, Pip Theatre, Ad Astra, Anywhere and Fringe Festivals and Lost Child Ensemble. In film and TV: Blue Heelers, Neighbours, Backberner, Stingers, many educational and corporate videos, several commercials and feature films Swimming For Gold and Audrey, Audible, voice over and improvised simulated patient work.
Biography
Lisa has appeared in many La Boite productions including The Enemy Within, The Perfectionist, No Exit, The Threepenny Opera, The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole, Plastik, Angry Housewives, The Summer of the Seventeenth Doll, The Maids, Popular Front and War Women; in Toadshow’s Conway Christ and The Hound of Music; Acronym’s King Lear, The Visit and Teechers; Fractal’s Female Parts, The Yellow Wallpaper and The Untouchable Julie; and in an all-female production of Richard 11 for Conspiracy Theatre Co. in Napier St Theatre in Melbourne. Lisa has done a lot of filmTV work including. Blue Heelers, Australia’s Most Wanted, Neighbours, Backberner, Stingers, educational and corporate videos and ABC Radio Drama. After returning to Brisbane in 2015, she has appeared in That Production Company’s When the Rain Stops Falling, The Curators’ Uncle Vanya, Ghosts, The Revolutionists and Shadows of Love; Grand Horizons, Psycho Beach Party (X Collective) and Australian Open (7th Floor) at PIP Theatre and Children of the Black Skirt for Lost Child Ensemble, Polymorphic Production’s The History of the Devil at Metro Arts Theatre and Ad Astra’s production of Loot, directed by Jennifer Flowers. Most recently, she was in Bent Productions’ The Mayne Inheritance. She also performed in an Audible sci-fi podcast, feature films Swimming For Gold and Audrey, considerable voice-over work, several TV and internet commercials, simulated patient work in hospitals and countless radio promos. She has also directed Plucked for the Anywhere Festival (which won The People’s Choice Award) and John Romeril’s Mrs Thally F, one of the short plays in Shadows of Love in 2022.
Ad Astra Plays
Upcoming Plays
Past Plays
Reviews
A huge accolade needs to be given to Lisa Hickey, who played the corpse of the late Mrs. McLeavey. Despite having no lines, her physical comedy was brilliantly comical.
Noah Cotgrove - Whats The Show | Read Review Here
Lisa Hickey played the deceased Mrs McLeavy, and while one could be forgiven for thinking that a role as a corpse with no lines presents no opportunity for the actor to make the character their own, Hickey proves otherwise. Much of the play’s physicality revolves around the disrespect shown to poor deceased Mrs McLeavy, comically well done for full impact by Hickey.
David Wilson - Absolute Theatre | Read Review Here
Special mention must go to Lisa Hickey who played the deceased Mrs McLeavy. It was the best performance of a corpse I have ever seen. Hickey was shuffled all over the stage, including being locked into a coffin, stuffed in the cupboard (luckily it was a stage cupboard; I was nervous there for a minute), and de-robed and wrapped up like a mummy. Her stillness was excellent and her characterisation utterly believable.
Sarah Skubala - Theatre Travels | Read Review Here
Lisa Hickey plays the corpse, Mrs McLeavey, and is variously turned upside down, stored in a cupboard, dressed and undressed and wrapped in a shroud. She is to be congratulated.
Suzannah Conway - ArtsHub | Read Review Here
As the Black Skirt / Harold Horrocks, Lisa Hickey gave a riveting performance, with no dialogue attributed to the governess, her physical stage presence was in turn terrifying and captivating as she commanded the space and the ‘children’ using only the clapping of her hands, while the role of the Government Inspector, Horrocks, allowed Hickey’s comedic timing to come into play and gave her vocals a workout as this character and what they represented in the play was mocked with high buffoonery during an indulgent morning tea scene.
Sandra Harman – Theatre Travels | Read full review here
Hickey is excellent as the always silent, yet still incredibly stern headmistress implements control with an oversized pair of scissors that ominously jangle from tie around her waist in representation of the severed-ties trauma so integral to the story. On occasion, however, the skirt is used with quirk rather than just allowing it stand alone as an eerie symbol. She has a wonderful stage presence, emphasised by a variety of physical contortions in compensate for her lack of dialogue as The Black Skirt, and, as orphanage inspector Harold Horrocks, she enlivens an over-the-top comic satire scene without toeing too far into Sir Les Patterson territory.
Meredith Walker – The Blurb | Read full review here
Lisa Hickey brought significant variety to the role of Helene Alving, by turns flirtatious, coy, maniacal, possessive, and tormented. Patrick Shearer was riveting as Oswald, languidly unpredictable but increasingly unkempt, frightening, and violent as his ideas of the past unravelled around him. The scenes between Hickey’s overbearing Helene and Shearer’s spoiled, unhinging Oswald were standout – the intensity and fury in their interactions made it almost difficult to watch.
Elise Lawrence – Backstreet Brisbane | Read full review here
Hickey was a standout performer with wonderfully exaggerated yet nuanced facial expressions and physicality. She drew the audience in and delivered a compelling performance.
Priya Shah - Theatre Haus | Read full review here
As the Black Skirt / Harold Horrocks, Lisa Hickey gave a riveting performance, with no dialogue attributed to the governess, her physical stage presence was in turn terrifying and captivating as she commanded the space and the ‘children’ using only the clapping of her hands, while the role of the Government Inspector, Horrocks, allowed Hickey’s comedic timing to come into play and gave her vocals a workout as this character and what they represented in the play was mocked with high buffoonery during an indulgent morning tea scene.
Sandra Harmon - Theatre Travels Review | Read Full Review
Lisa Hickey imbues Olympe de Gouges with class, fear, wit and a manic desperation. She plays her as one of the original influencer, desperate to leave a legacy, yet too scared to write her own story. She fills every scene with life, and cheekily breaks the fourth wall to bring us along with her. Hickey is a delight to watch.
Ads J. - Nothing Ever Happens in Brisbane | Read Full Review
But the outstanding performances of this show go to Patrick Shearer as Oswald and Lisa Hickey as Helene Alving who descend into madness together as the mother who lied and the son who suffers the consequences. Theirs are two of the bravest performances I’ve seen since Noni Hazlehurst took to the stage in Mother… The role of Helene Alving is one of the strongest roles in the western theatre canon and Hickey nails it. Her vocal range empowers her character as much as her stage presence. Just when you expect a roar, she pulls back to a whisper and you feel the springs tightening around her soul.
Debra Bela – Stage Whispers | Read Full Review
Other Plays
2025 - The Mayne Inheritance. (Theatre) Bent Productions. Actor – Mother and Mary Mayne.
2024 - Australian Open (Theatre). 7th Floor Theatre, PIP Theatre. Australian Open. Actor – Belinda.
2024 - Psycho Beach Party (Theatre). X Collective, PIP Theatre: Actor – Bettina Barnes.
2024 - Loot” (Theatre). Ad Astra Theatre. Role: Actor – Mrs McLeavy
2023 - The History of the Devil (Theatre). Polymorphic Theatre. Metro Arts. Actor – multiple roles.
2023 - Children of the Black Skirt (Theatre). Lost Child Ensemble in assoc. with The Curators’ Theatre. Actor – Horricks/Black Skirt.
2023 - Grand Horizons (Theatre). PIP Theatre. Actor – Carla.
2023 - Audrey (Feature Film) Actor – Mother of Audrey.
2022 – Shadows of Love. (Theatre). The Curators’ Independent Theatre & Brisbane Fringe (3 short plays) Director and Actor – Female lead in The Stronger monologue.
2021 - It Was Tuesday (Theatre). Short and Sweet Festival. Actor – shopper.
2021 - Plucked. (Theatre). Anywhere Festival 2021. Director.
2021 - The Revolutionists (Theatre). The Curators’ Theatre. Actor – Olympe de Gouge.
2020 – Rumors (Theatre). Growl Theatre Company. Actor – Claire.
2020 - Swimming for Gold (Feature Film) Actor: Mother of a lead.
2019 – Ghosts (Theatre). The Curators’ Theatre. Actor – Mrs Alving.
2018 - Julius Caesar (Theatre), Heartbeast Theatre. Actor – Cassius.
2018 - A Clockwork Orange (Theatre). The Arts Theatre. Actor – various including doctor, old woman, prisoner.
2017 - Uncle Vanya, (Theatre). The Curators. Actor – Yelena.
2016 - When the Rain Stops Falling (Theatre). THAT Production Co. Actor – older Elizabeth.
2015 - The Untouchable Julie (Theatre). Fractal Theatre Co. 2015. Actor – Multiple roles.
1999 - Backberner. (Television) Actor - SOCOG Rep.
1997 - Neighbours. (Television) Actor: Relationship Counsellor
1996 - “Richard II” (Theatre). Conspiracy Theatre Co. Napier St Theatre., Melb. Actor – multiple roles.
1996 - Blue Heelers.(Television) Role: Lawyer, Sophie Camillo.
1995 - Graveyard Shift (Theatre). The Stage. Fitzroy, Melbourne. Actor – Alien.
1994 - Fractal Theatre “The Yellow Wall Paper(Theatre). Princess Theatre. Actor – female lead.
1994 - Bloody Poetry (Theatre). The Edge Theatre, Metro Arts. Actor – Harriet Shelley.
1994 – Fire (Television). Actor - Mitch, friend of lead.
1994 - Shakespeare’s Birthday Celebrations. (Theatre). Grin and Tonic. QPAC. 1994 Actor – multiple roles.
1993 - Too Clever by Half (Theatre). Acronym Theatre Co. Actor – Female lead.
1993 – Teechers (Theatre). Acronym Theatre Co. Actor – multiple roles.
1993 - King Lear (Theatre). Acronym Theatre Co. Actor – Goneril.
1993 - Paradise Beach (Television) Actor - Role of DSS interviewer.
1992 - The Visit (Theatre). Acronym Theatre Co. Actor – Female Lead.
1992 - Letters from Tonk (Theatre) “Out of Box” Drama Festival. Actor – mother.
1992 - “Female Parts (Theatre). Fractal Theatre, Actor – Two lead roles.
1991 Angry Housewives (Theatre) La Boite Theatre. Actor – housewife.
1991 - The Maids (Theatre). 1991 La Boite Theatre. Actor - Madame.
1989 - Threepenny Opera (Theatre). La Boite Theatre. Actor – Mrs Peachum.
1989 - The Perfectionist (Theatre). La Boite Theatre. Actor – Barbara.
1988 - No Exit (Theatre). La Boite Theatre. Actor – Estelle.
1988 - The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole (Theatre). La Boite Theatre. Actor – Pauline Mole.
1988 - Summer of the Seventeenth Doll (Theatre). La Boite Theatre. Actor - Olive.
1986 - War Women (Theatre). La Boite Theatre. Actor – Member of Greek Chorus,
1986 Popular Front (Theatre). La Boite Theatre. Actor – Female Lead.
1983 - Plastik (Theatre). La Boite Theatre Actor – secret agent.
1980 - Enemy Within (Theatre). La Boite Theatre. Actor – Magda.
Training
1991 – 1993 Drama Major, Arts Degree, University of Queensland
2000s Numerous courses, Drama Victoria.
1980s Theatre Sports, La Boite.
1980s Non-course singing lessons. Conservatorium of Music.
Representation
Ego Management
