Finlay Atkinson

I first witnessed the wonder of Matilda the Musical at the Princess Theatre in Melbourne when I was eight years old, and its impact on me was profound. I looked at those kids on stage and decided then and there, "I want to do that for a living!” But I also found something else: as an energetic, neurodivergent child who was intelligent, curious, and unintentionally labelled "a little bit naughty," I found a fictional hero who, just like me, also happened to sing and dance. When Matilda wondered aloud, in "Quiet," whether there was something different going on inside her head compared to her friends, I felt entirely understood. The following year, I sang "Naughty" at my first ever solo performance. Three years after that, I played Lavender in my school's production of Matilda the Musical, the first year it had been licensed for amateur performance. My commitment to training has been the constant ever since. Feeling like an outsider at mainstream school but passionate about theatre, I worked hard to rewrite my own story, auditioning into the Theatre Arts program at the Victorian College of the Arts Secondary School (VCASS), where I've trained in acting, singing and dance alongside my academic studies. As I complete Year 12 in a few months, I've chosen to take 2027 as a gap year, dedicated entirely to auditions, workshops and classes, with the goal of performing professionally. Ironically, as I stand on the verge of turning eighteen and submit this application for an adult playing a child in this very production, I still look almost identical to my thirteen-year-old self, the one peeking out from the stage curtains to tease the audience about the newt in Trunchbull's water jug!

1. 2026

   The Curious Incident of the Dog In The Night-time

   Reverend Peters / Information Officer / Company · Victorian College of the Arts Secondary School, dir. Joel Batalha

2. 2025

   Hidden Heroes - Devised Music Theatre Performance

   Ensemble · Victorian College of the Arts Secondary School, dir. Nicole Malloy

3. 2025

   After Us - Theatre Arts / Visual Arts collaboration

   'Metal' · Victorian College of the Arts Secondary School, dir. Tara Daniel

4. 2022

   School of Rock

   Summer Hathaway · Frankston High School

5. 2021

   Matilda the Musical

   Lavender · Frankston High School

6. 2019

   Hairspray!

   Motormouth Maybelle · Acting Performance Studio

7. 2019

   Willy Wonka & The Chocolate Factory

   Veruca Salt · Acting Performance Studio