Marina Prior

Marina Prior (born 18 October 1963) is an Australian soprano and actress with a career mainly in musical theatre. From 1990 to 1993, she starred as the original Christine Daaé in the Australian premiere of The Phantom of the Opera, opposite Anthony Warlow and later Rob Guest.

Early life Prior was born in Port Moresby in the Territory of Papua and New Guinea, Australia, where her father was working in the shipping industry. Her parents were members of the local Gilbert and Sullivan Society. Initially she had tried out for the chorus, she reflected "When they told me it was 'Mabel' I nearly fainted ... I could not believe it ... It was like a fairy tale".

Other appearances include Miss Adelaide in Guys and Dolls (2000); the title role in Annie Get Your Gun (2004), both in staged concert versions with The Production Company; in 2003 in John Misto's play Harp on the Willow (Mary O'Hara) at the Ensemble Theatre, Sydney; as Jane Smart in The Witches of Eastwick (2002); and as Belinda Blair in Noises Off (2003). She appeared as Miss Adelaide in Guys and Dolls at the Princess Theatre, Melbourne in March 2008 and with the Melbourne Theatre Company in The Hypocrite in November 2008. She reprised her role in Guys and Dolls from March 2009 in Sydney.

In 2011, Prior appeared as Mrs Banks in the Australian production of the musical Mary Poppins.

Prior performed in the 2015-2016 Australian production of The Sound of Music as Baroness Schraeder. The production began its national tour in Sydney on 13 December 2015 and closed in Perth on 7 October 2016.

From May 27 to 11 June 2017, Prior played the lead role of Dolly Levi in The Production Company's production of Hello, Dolly!. She then joined the Melbourne Theatre Company's production of Hay Fever from 23 September to 1 November 2017, starring as Judith Bliss. In December 2017, Prior joined the Melbourne cast of Dream Lover as the dual role of Polly Darin and Mary Douvan.

In November 2019 Prior was announced to headline as Violet Newstead in the Australian debut production of 9 to 5 The Musical whose premiere engagement - set for Sydney in April 2020 - would in fact, due to COVID-19 pandemic concerns, be delayed for two years, the production premiering with a February to May 2022 engagement at Sydney's Capitol Theatre with subsequent engagements through the summer and autumn at the Lyric Theatre at the Queensland Performing Arts Centre, Melbourne's State Theatre, and the Festival Theatre at the Adelaide Festival Centre. Prior then co-starred in the dual role of Miss Andrews and the Bird Woman in the engagement of Mary Poppins which opened January 29, 2023 at Melbourne's Her Majesty's Theatre. Prior also played the lead role of Kimberly in the 2025 Australian production of Kimberly Akimbo.

In the spring of 2025, she portrayed Madame Thénardier in the Australian performances of the Arena Spectacular World Concert Tour of Les Misérables. She reprised the role in London's West End for the show’s 40th anniversary. She's set to again perform the role in 2026 at the Royal Albert Hall, and Radio City Music Hall in New York City as a part of the international concert tour.

Television and recordings In the 1990s, Prior recorded three albums accompanied by the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra. Leading Lady, Aspects of Andrew Lloyd Webber (which received an ARIA nomination) and Somewhere – The Songs of Sondheim and Bernstein.

Prior was a judge on both the 2006 and 2007 Seven Network reality television series It Takes Two.

In 2012, Prior released her fourth studio album, Both Sides Now, which peaked at number 42. This was followed by Encore and Candlelight Christmas in 2013 and a live album in 2014 Marina Prior Live.

In 2015, Prior starred in the television opera The Divorce.

In April 2016, Prior released Together with Mark Vincent. This has become her first top 5 album on the ARIA Chart.

Discography Studio albums + List of studio albums, with selected details, chart positions and certifications

Released: November 1991 Label: Sony Music Australia (469214.2) Formats: CD, cassette 15 ARIA: Platinum

Marina Prior has been the Goodwill Ambassador for Samaritan's Purse Australia since 2005. In this capacity she has visited several development projects in Asia, including schools, water projects and distribution of Operation Christmas Child shoe boxes. In 2009 she featured in "A Short Film About Shoe Boxes" to promote Samaritan's Purse and Operation Christmas Child.

Awards and nominations Prior was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia in the 2023 King's Birthday Honours for "significant service to musical theatre as a singer and performer".

Prior has received numerous awards; these include three Green Room Awards (Les Miserables in 1990, The Phantom of the Opera in 1991, and Kiss Me, Kate in 2005) and in 1993 the Advance Australia Award for her contribution to the performing arts.

Prior was inducted into Australia's 100 Entertainers of the Century.

Helpmann Awards The Helpmann Awards is an awards show, celebrating live entertainment and performing arts in Australia, presented by industry group Live Performance Australia since 2001. Note: 2020 and 2021 were cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. 2003 Marina Prior - The Witches of Eastwick Best Female Actor in a Musical 2006 Marina Prior - The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee Best Female Actor in a Musical 2008 Marina Prior - Guys and Dolls Best Female Actor in a Musical 2011 Marina Prior - Mary Poppins Best Female Actor in a Supporting Role in a Musical 2018 Marina Prior - Dream Lover: The Bobby Darin Musical Best Female Actor in a Musical

Mo Awards The Australian Entertainment Mo Awards (commonly known informally as the Mo Awards), were annual Australian entertainment industry awards. They recognise achievements in live entertainment in Australia from 1975 to 2016. Marina Prior won three awards in that time. (wins only) 1990 Marina Prior Female Musical Theatre Performer of the Year 1994 Marina Prior Female Musical Theatre Performer of the Year 2008 Marina Prior Brian Stacey Female Musical Theatre Performer of the Year

Personal life From 1991 Marina Prior was married to Peter Lowrey, also a musical theatre actor: they have three children; by 2012 she had married Grant Piro, an actor.

Prior became a devout Christian in the late 1990s. She has worked for charity organisations Samaritan's Purse (on their Operation Christmas Child) and Vision Australia's Carols by Candlelight.