Sophie Katarina Morris (born 7 June 1993) is a New Zealand singer, actor and presenter who performs within New Zealand and internationally. She was the first ever female to tour with The Ten Tenors, joining the group on their 'Wish You Were Here' Tour in 2018. [1] [2]
Morris was born and raised in Dunedin. She began singing aged 10 as Gretl in The Sound of Music which sparked a love for being on the stage. She attended St Hilda's Collegiate School where she was Arts Prefect. [3] She went on to train in classical and contemporary voice at the University of Otago, gaining a Master's in music, as well as a Bachelor of Commerce in marketing. [4] [5] [6]
Morris performs as a singer, actor and presenter.
Musical theatre roles performed include Jellylorum in Cats , Rapunzel in Into the Woods, Sophie in Mamma Mia and Sandy in Grease . [7]
New Zealand events performed at include Coca-Cola Christmas in the Park, the APRA Awards [8] and Cruise for a Cause on Milford Sound. [9]
She has performed sell-out nights of her own shows Sophie Goes to Broadway and Sophie Morris on Stage. [4] She released her debut album Sophie Morris – Songs from the Stage in 2018. [10]
Morris performed Christmas carols for passengers on an Air New Zealand flight on Christmas Day in 2015 when returning to Dunedin to see her family. [11]
Morris presents as a newsreader, host, guest lecturer, guest speaker and narrator. She is a regular newsreader on Channel 39 and is often invited to speak about her career, the performance industry and provide advice and motivation.[ citation needed ]
During the COVID-19 pandemic in New Zealand, Morris created a show "Sophie Morris – Songs and Stories from the Stage" which was broadcast in a live stream from her living room. The show shared stories and music from her adventures as a performer. Proceeds of the performance went to Pet Refuge, a New Zealand charity.
Morris has performed for many sporting events including the T20 Black Clash (with past and present members of the All Blacks and Black Caps), the Joseph Parker v Andy Ruiz WBO World Heavyweight Championship Title Fight, The Oceania Cup (Great Britain Rugby League Lions v Kiwis) and the Rugby League Four Nations. [12] [13]
During the COVID-19 lockdown in New Zealand, Morris performed the Australian and New Zealand national anthems for television broadcast on ANZAC Day for viewers to sing along with at home in an ANZAC Day Tribute. [14]
Dunedin Railways is the trading name of Dunedin Railways Limited, an operator of a railway line and tourist trains based at Dunedin Railway Station in the South Island of New Zealand. The company is a council-controlled trading organisation wholly owned by Dunedin City Council through its holding company Dunedin City Holdings Limited.
New Zealand's Fortune Theatre laid claim to being the world's southernmost professional theatre company and sole year round professional theatre group in Dunedin, until its closure on 1 May 2018, citing financial difficulties. The company ran for 44 years. The theatre regularly produced local shows and hosted touring performances.
Allied Press is an independent New Zealand media and publishing company based in Dunedin. The company's main asset is the Otago Daily Times, New Zealand's oldest daily newspaper. Allied Press has a number of other daily and community newspapers and commercial printing operations throughout the South Island including the Canterbury–based media company Star Media. It also operates Dunedin's regional television station, Channel 39, on Freeview HD.
Otago Polytechnic was a public New Zealand tertiary education institute, centred in Dunedin with additional campuses in Cromwell and Auckland. Otago Polytechnic provided career-focused education and training, offering a range of New Zealand accredited postgraduate qualifications, degrees, diplomas and certificates at levels 2–10. In November 2022, it was formally merged into the new national mega polytechnic Te Pūkenga, ending its existence as an independent entity.
Anna Leese is a New Zealand born soprano opera singer.
Clare Elizabeth Curran is a New Zealand former politician who served as a member of the New Zealand Parliament for Dunedin South from 2008 to 2020. She was the Minister of Broadcasting, Communications, and Digital Media and Associate Minister for the Accident Compensation Corporation in the current Labour-led coalition government. Curran retired from politics at the 2020 general election.
The Forsyth Barr Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium in Dunedin, New Zealand. At various stages of development it was also known as Dunedin Stadium or Awatea Street Stadium, or its non-commercial official name during the 2011 Rugby World Cup and 2015 FIFA U-20 World Cup, Otago Stadium. The fully covered stadium is also known colloquially as 'The Glasshouse' due to its resemblance to a horticultural hothouse.
The Otago Witness was a prominent illustrated weekly newspaper in the early years of the European settlement of New Zealand, produced in Dunedin, the provincial capital of Otago. Published weekly, it existed from 1851 to 1932. The introduction of the Otago Daily Times, followed by other daily newspapers in its circulation area, led it to focus on serving a rural readership in the lower South Island, where poor road access prevented newspapers being delivered daily. It also provided an outlet for local fiction writers. It is notable as the first newspaper to use illustrations and photographs and was the first New Zealand newspaper to provide a correspondence column for children, which was known as "Dot's Little Folk". Together with the Auckland-based Weekly News and the Wellington-based New Zealand Free Lance it was one of the most significant illustrated weekly New Zealand newspapers in the 19th and early 20th centuries.
Monique Rhodes is a singer, songwriter and producer born in New Zealand. She has toured the world performing and composing music. Monique has produced two platinum selling albums in New Zealand, toured Europe twice with Chuck Berry and collaborated on music projects with some of the most well known inspirational teachers in the world including the Dalai Lama.
Robert Lord was the first New Zealand professional playwright, and one of the first New Zealand playwrights to have plays produced abroad since Merton Hodge in the 1930s.
Shona Katrine MacTavish was a New Zealand dancer, teacher, author, choreographer and pioneer in liturgical dance in the Asia-Pacific. She was known as "the mother of modern dance in New Zealand".
Anna Grimaldi is a New Zealand para-athlete, primarily competing in the long jump and sprint events. She has won two gold medals at Paralympics in the women's long jump: at the 2016 Summer Paralympics in Rio de Janeiro, and at the 2020 Summer Paralympics in Tokyo.
Terry Isobel MacTavish is an actor and teacher from Dunedin, New Zealand.
Aaron Garth Hawkins is a New Zealand politician who served as the 58th mayor of Dunedin, New Zealand from 2019 to 2022. He was elected as Mayor on 12 October 2019 with 54.54% of the vote, after two prior terms as councillor. He is endorsed by the Green Party. He unsuccessfully stood for re-election as mayor in 2022.
Ingrid Marieke Leary is a New Zealand politician. In 2020 she was elected as a Member of Parliament in the House of Representatives for the Labour Party.
Rachel Jane Brooking is a New Zealand Labour Party politician and Member of Parliament who is currently serving as the Minister for Oceans and Fisheries and Minister for Food Safety in the Sixth Labour Government. She first became an MP at the 2020 New Zealand general election. She is a lawyer by profession.
Winifred Honor McKellar is a New Zealand former mezzo-soprano opera singer and singing teacher, and was the first full-time lecturer in singing at the University of Otago in Dunedin. Her students have included Jonathan Lemalu, Patrick Power and Matt Landreth. In 1989 she was awarded a Queen's Service Medal for services to music, and in 2012 she was made a life member of the New Zealand Association of Teachers of Singing.
Lisa Jadwiga Valentina Warrington is a New Zealand theatre studies academic, director, actor and author. She has directed more than 130 productions, and established the Theatre Aotearoa database. In 2014 she was awarded a Lifetime Achievement Award in the Dunedin Theatre Awards, and was three times winner of a New Zealand Listener Best Director award, including one for Tom Scott's The Daylight Atheist.
Louise Durant Petherbridge, is a New Zealand actor, director, deviser, producer and lecturer.
