Bio

Originally from Aotearoa New Zealand, now based in Australia, Kelly crossed the ditch in 2025 to attend WAAPA in preparation for the next chapter of her career. There, she completed a Diploma of Musical Theatre, playing the title role in The Drowsy Chaperone.
 

A powerful voice for diverse representation, Kelly will debut her solo show Yellow Fever: An Original Musical Cabaret at FRINGE WORLD Festival 2026, where she is the proud recipient of The Next Act Fund and has been selected to perform at The Cellar at Liberty Theatre. 

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Kelly has been a Principal Resident Artist on 17 national tours across more than 22 cities and towns in New Zealand. Her international engagements have taken her to destinations including France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Italy, Slovenia, Japan, Bali, and Australia. She has collaborated with leading arts organisations, highlights including voicing the character 'Eel' in Hana the Glowworm for the Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra, performing and creating for New Zealand Opera's Voices of Aotearoa new work development project, and portraying Ada Wells in the rock musical That Bloody Woman with Auckland Music Theatre.

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An accomplished actress, Kelly received the Sam Wanamaker Award for Most Promising Actor at the SGCNZ National Shakespeare Festival, which led to her representing NZ at London’s Globe Theatre performing as Titania in A Midsummer Night’s Dream . She also performed as Don John in Much Ado About Nothing with YASC at Auckland's Pop-Up Globe.

 

​Kelly holds a Bachelor of Music in Classical Voice Performance and a Bachelor of Arts in European Studies Conjoint Degree from the University of Auckland, combining her loves of music, art, culture and languages. She was the recipient of several scholarships, including the University of Auckland Scholarship, the Evelyn M. Harrison Scholarship, and the Palazzo Italia Scholarship, which enabled her to study in Venice, Italy. Among the highlights of her time at university were performing the title role in Ravel’s L’enfant et les sortilèges, singing as a soloist with the Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra as an APO Young Achiever, and performing in the exhibition Lee Mingwei and His Relations at Auckland Art Gallery.

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A passionate advocate for the arts, Kelly has held leadership roles, including Auckland Student Ambassador for the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra, Coordinator of Young Friends of New Zealand Opera, and President of the University of Auckland School of Music Student Association. Through these positions, she has demonstrated her commitment to engaging diverse audiences.