WRITER - COMPOSER
Laura Murphy is the writer, composer and lyricist behind The Lovers which enjoyed a sold-out premiere season at the Sydney Opera House in 2022 with Bell Shakespeare. An Original Cast Recording of the musical was released in 2024 followed by an Australian tour produced by Shake & Stir in 2025. The Lovers won the Matilda Award for “Best Musical or Cabaret”.
Laura wrote the book, music and lyrics for the critically acclaimed original Australian musical Zombie! The Musical which enjoyed a sold-out premiere season at Hayes Theatre in 2024. Zombie! received the Critic's Choice Award for “Best Musical” at the TimeOut Sydney Arts and Culture Awards and three Sydney Theatre Awards including “Best Production of a Musical”. The Zombie! Cast Album is available now!
Laura is the composer and lyricist behind new Australian musical The Dismissal which was celebrated as "The best Australian musical of the century" by Jason Blake at Audrey Journal and "Australia's answer to Hamilton" by Peter FitzSimons at Sydney Morning Herald. The Dismissal won the Australian Writers Guild award for Musical Theatre as well as receiving the prestigious David Williamson Prize for Excellence in Australian Writing for Theatre. Laura produced a studio recording of The Dismissal in collaboration with co-producer Michael Tan.
For screen, Laura has written original songs for Austin (ABC/Northern Pictures), I Am Me and Imagination Train (Ambience Entertainment). She was also the songwriter for Magical Tales and Magical Tales: Surprises, where she starred as Sparkles the Fairy across ten seasons
PERFORMER
Laura has performed on both stage and screen for over a decade. Roles include 'Tania' in Muriel's Wedding, 'Lenora' in Cry Baby, 'Sally Brown' in You're A Good Man, Charlie Brown and 'Jan' in Grease. Laura has received multiple awards and nominations for her work in theatre including receiving the award for “Best Performance in a Supporting Role in a Musical” at the 2016 Sydney Theatre Awards.
This year, Laura will play the role of ‘Jill Farnham’ in the premiere production of Sydney Theatre Company's Whispering Jack: The John Farnham Musical.
