Ningali Lawford-Wolf

Ningali Lawford-Wolf (1967–2019), Wangkatjungka actor and dancer, was born at Christmas Creek Station in the Kimberley. She began her performance career as a dancer at the Aboriginal Islander Dance Theatre, later performing with the Bangarra Dance Theatre. In 1990, she made her acting debut in the musical Bran Nue Dae; she appeared in the film version in 2009. Her 1994 one-woman show Ningali toured internationally in 1995 and won the Fringe First Award for best new production at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe that year. Lawford-Wolf performed in stage productions for Belvoir Street Theatre, the Black Swan State Theatre Company and the Sydney Theatre Company. Her film career included starring roles in Rabbit-Proof Fence (2002) and Last Cab to Darwin (2015), for which she was nominated for the AACTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role. She also appeared in ABC television's Mystery Road (2018). Off screen Lawford-Wolf was involved in community work in Fitzroy Crossing, advocating on issues relating to education and employment for traditional owners and becoming a director of the Indigenous-owned Kimberley Agricultural and Pastoral Company. In 2019, Lawford-Wolf tragically died while on tour with the Sydney Theatre Company's acclaimed adaptation of Kate Grenville's The Secret River, a production she helped to create. A cultural consultant and artistic collaborator with Bangarra Dance Theatre, Lawford-Wolf's legacy was honoured in their 2021 production SandSong, created in consultation with Wangkatjunga/Walmajarri Elders from the Kimberley and Great Sandy Desert regions.