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Sigrid ThorntonAustralian actress
Date of Birth: 12.02.1959
Country:  Australia |
Content:
- Sigrid Thornton: An Australian Acting Icon
- Career Beginnings and Television Success
- Major Film and Television Roles
- Stage Highlights
- Recent Film and Television Work
- "The Sigrid Factor"
- Personal Life and Advocacy
Sigrid Thornton: An Australian Acting Icon
Early Life and TrainingSigrid Thornton was born in Canberra, Australia, to Merle, an academic and author, and Neil Thornton, an academic. She grew up in Brisbane, attending St. Peter's Lutheran College. At the age of 18, she spent two years in London as a member of the Unicorn Theatre. Returning to Brisbane, she attended a Twelfth Night theatre workshop, and in 1970, Thornton performed for Queen Elizabeth II in Yesterday's Mirror at the Captain Cook Bicentenary celebrations. She was a student of renowned theatre director Joan Whalley.
Career Beginnings and Television Success
Thornton's acting career kicked off in 1975 with appearances in the television series Homicide and Division 4. She also made her mark in The Sullivans, playing Elizabeth "Buffy" Turnbull. In 1977, she made her film debut as Wendy in Michael Thornhill's FJ Holden and as Maria in Bruce Beresford's adaptation of Henry Handel Richardson's colonial Australian novel The Getting of Wisdom (1977).
In 1978, Thornton appeared in the Australian television sequel to the British comedy series Father, Dear Father in Australia and Cop Shop. That same year, she starred as Angela in Snapshot (aka Day After Halloween), directed by Simon Wincer, for which she was nominated for an Australian Film Awards for Best Actress in a Leading Role in a Feature Film in 1979.
In 1980, she appeared as Roslyn Coulson in the Australian television drama Prisoner (known overseas as Prisoner: Cell Block H). Thornton went on to star in Duet for Four in 1981. In 1982, she played Jessica Harrison in The Man from Snowy River and its 1988 sequel, The Man from Snowy River II. In 1983, she appeared in Street Hero. She starred in the 1983 miniseries All the Rivers Run.
From 1988 to 1991, she played Amelia Lawson in the American series Paradise. The syndication of All the Rivers Run, The Man from Snowy River, and The Man from Snowy River II introduced her to a wider international audience.
Major Film and Television Roles
In 1991, she starred in George T. Miller's Beyond Bedlam and Karl Schulz's A Woman of Independent Means in 1996. From 1998 to 2000, she played Laura Joy Gibson in the Australian television series SeaChange, winning the Most Outstanding Actress award in 1999 and 2000.
Stage Highlights
Thornton's stage performances include The Blue Room in 2002/03, directed by Simon Phillips for the Melbourne Theatre Company alongside Marcus Graham. In 2009, she made her debut with Opera Australia in their Melbourne Arts Centre production of Sondheim and Wheeler's A Little Night Music, directed by Stuart Maunder. In 2014, she received critical acclaim for her portrayal of Blanche DuBois in Tennessee Williams' A Streetcar Named Desire for Black Swan State Theatre Company in Perth.
Recent Film and Television Work
In 2002, Thornton starred in the Australian thriller The Pact, directed by Stratford Hamilton and written by Hugh O'Brien. In 2003, Thornton appeared in Emma Freeman's Gloves Off. In 2004, she played a geneticist in a four-episode arc on MDA. She shaved her head for her role in the 2005 telemovie Little Oberon.
Thornton hosted the nine-part television series Good for You. In 2010, she appeared in Underbelly: The Golden Mile as recurring character Geraldine "Gerry" Lloyd, an Australian Federal Police detective and Royal Commission into Wood investigator.
In 2011, Thornton starred in the independent Australian film Face to Face, directed by Michael Rymer. In 2012, she featured in Who Do You Think You Are?
In 2016, Thornton appeared in the fourth season of the SoHo drama series Wentworth in seven episodes as a special guest star. She portrayed Sonia Stevens (originally played by Tina Bursill in Prisoner), a woman on remand accused of murdering her best friend.
Thornton returned to Wentworth in Season 5 as a main cast member and was a central antagonist in Season 6 until her character's death in Season 7, Episode 19 "Edge." In 2018, she appeared in Anh's Brush with Fame.
"The Sigrid Factor"
In his book The Big Shift on changing Australian demographics and culture, Bernard Salt coined the term "The Sigrid Factor," suggesting that Australian towns and cities featuring films starring Thornton have flourished. In a broader sense, he referred to the shift in Australian cultural values, which were well-reflected in the types of locations in which Sigrid Thornton's characters operated: the Riverland in 1980s All the Rivers Run and the coast in 2000s SeaChange.
Personal Life and Advocacy
Thornton is married to actor Tom Burlinson and has two children. She is known for her work with World Vision, the Royal Children's Hospital, Vision Australia, the Reach Foundation, and other charities. She has lobbied successive governments for the preservation and resourcing of public libraries and the Australian screen industry. She has been appointed to several federal and state screen organizations, including Film Victoria, and continues to support and mentor the industry.
