QUEENIE VAN DE ZANDT

Queenie van de Zandt moves through the world entertaining, educating and serenading the people she meets.  She has the unique ability in all her work to make people feel deeply, and to awaken laughter, empathy and awareness in equal measure.

Her ability to seamlessly transition between various genres of entertainment sets her apart as a truly versatile performer, with a career spanning musical theatre, plays, cabaret, recording, film, and television, as well as acclaimed work as a comedian, writer, and arts educator.

Her career highlights include, on television: Upright Season 2 (Foxtel/Binge), The Newsreader Seasons 1 & 2, Very Small Business and Da Kath & Kim Code (ABC); in theatre: Women of Troy (STC/Malthouse) and Abigail’s Party (Ensemble Theatre); on film: Girl Clock; in musical theatre: Next to Normal (Chapel off Chapel), Into the Woods (Victorian Opera), Funny Girl (Sydney Symphony Orchestra) and King Kong (Global Creatures); and in cabaret/concert; Smoke & Mirrors (Sydney, Melbourne & Edinburgh Festival) and Moments in the Woods (Adelaide Cabaret Festival).

In 2011 Queenie founded, Amazon Woman Enterprises (AWE), a boutique theatrical & entertainment production house that creates and produces multi-award-winning, critically acclaimed live shows, comedy performances, and theatrical experiences throughout Australia and Internationally. Highlights include: releasing four albums, co-writing and co-producing the award-winning BLUE: The Song of Joni Mitchell and nurturing her cult following with regular online offerings and performances as her alter-ego Jan van de Stool.

Most recently Amazon Woman has branched out to create one-of-a-kind, music-driven, theatrical events for clients such as Optus, RSPCA and Yamaha as well as bespoke, ‘This is Your Life’ cabaret shows for weddings, significant birthdays, and end-of-life celebrations.  Through a process of interviews, research, and creativity, Queenie (along with willing friends, family, and/or colleagues) creates a one-off, unique, theatrical event to help people profoundly celebrate in a way that is deeply felt and never forgotten.

Alongside her performance and creative work, Queenie has also been a leading arts educator in Australia since 2000. In 2015, Queenie took her passion for the arts to the next level by founding The Australian Musical Theatre Academy (AMTA). Working with only the best creative artists in the Australian arts and entertainment scene, AMTA offers workshops, courses, webinars, private coaching and mentorship for students of all skill levels, giving people the tools to live creative, passionate and fulfilling lives.

As a true champion of the arts, having joined Actors Equity, MEAA in her very first professional show in 1989, Queenie’s unwavering passion for her craft and commitment to the union has made her a powerful advocate for artists Australia-wide.

With a staggering 21 theatre award nominations and 7 well-deserved wins under her belt, Queenie van de Zandt's talent continues to be recognized with each new achievement. To stay connected with her latest projects and performances on YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and TikTok follow @QueenievdZandt | @JanvandeStool | @AMTAcademy.

  • “★★★★☆...it’s hard to imagine a better celebration of Joni Mitchell’s timeless artistry than Queenie van de Zandt’s tribute...The deftness with which van de Zandt interwove the story-telling and Mitchell’s songs exemplified cabaret at its most sophisticated… Capping it all was the glorious translucence of her voice…”

    Sydney Morning Herald
    (for BLUE: The Songs of Joni Mitchell)

  • “...Jan is a beautifully observed comic creation who feels on par with Kath and Kim or Norman Gunston...an impressive showcase for van de Zandt’s chameleon-like talents as a performer... the way van de Zandt has built Jan’s world is irresistible. It’s utterly, bizarrely brilliant.”

    Time Out Sydney
    (for Jan van de Stool in Parting the Red Curtains)

  • "Choose Your Own Adventure is an interactive cabaret event like nothing you have likely seen before… Queenie is a consummate performer who never disappoints… we just can’t get enough of Queenie van de Zandt’s delights.”

    Blue Curtains Brisbane
    (for Choose Your Own Adventure)

  • “Put simply, this is one of the best cabaret shows of the year. It is funny – so very funny – and van de Zandt is nothing short of charming throughout, while her voice is something to behold…As an entertainer, Queenie van de Zandt is in a league of her own”

    Aussietheatre.com
    (for CABARET - In 12 Easy Steps)

  • "Just when you think dry, underplayed, deadpan comedy is a lost art in Australia, along comes Queenie van de Zandt to restore your faith..."

    The Age
    (for I GET THE MUSIC IN YOU, an evening with Jan van de Stool)

  • “… hilarious comedy and stunning vocals...if being such a fantastic singer isn’t enough…this woman kicks goals with her spot on comedic stand up…”

    Aussietheatre.com
    (for The Best (and Worst) of Queenie van de Zandt)

  • "“On behalf of our Artistic Directors Cate Blanchett and Andrew Upton and the entire Sydney Theatre Company, thank you...The event was a great success and thanks to your direct involvement, we raised critical funds…you were absolutely wonderful – we had another function over the weekend and people are still talking about you...”

    Danielle Heidbrink, Head of Philanthropy
    Sydney Theatre Company

  • “★★★★☆ Van de Zandt has an extraordinary ease on stage and a rare ability to transfer that ease to the audience”

    Daily Review

  • “We are left speechless. What an amazing experience you created. I can't tell how many lives you changed, including ours. You lit sparks in people, you elevated spirits, and you helped deliver a tsunami of love that knocked everyone over. It really was too good to be true - but it was true!”

    Sean Linkson & Philip Comen,
    Grooms & “This Is Your Life” Cabaret Recipients

  • “★★★★★ A beloved identity on the national entertainment scene…an award-winning talent of tremendous range and emotional depth”

    Theatre Matters

  • “The organising committee of RSPCA…has asked me to convey to you how pleased they were with the participation of Jan van de Stool in the…fund-raising gala in Parliament House… Jan van de Stool was a great success with our guests keeping them constantly amused, informed and on the edge of their seats, with her delightful repartee… Jan’s participation certainly was an important factor in the success of the evening.”

    Bill Stephens, Entertainment Co-ordinator
    RSPCA ACT Fundraising Committee

  • “Queenie van de Zandt is mesmerizing”

    The Sydney Morning Herald

  • “an artist of extraordinary talent…van de Zandt is a rare and refreshing comic and musical talent, whose star could light the firmament on any world stage”

    The Canberra Times