Phillip Quast

Known best for his performance as Javert in the original Australian cast, the complete symphonic recording and 10th anniversary gala concert of Les Misérables, Philip has worked on some of the world’s most prestigious stages in both plays and musicals. He has won the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actor in a Musical three times and is the only actor to have achieved this feat.

Philip’s career is extraordinary eclectic; he spent 16 years as a presenter on Play School, has appeared in plays for Australia’s biggest theatre companies, and even starred as Georges Seraut in the London premiere of Stephen Sondheim’s Sunday in the Park with George. He has recently been working with opera singers from our Young Artist Program, helping them unlock their dramatic talents and bring their characters to life.

In this interview with our Artistic Director, Lyndon Terracini, Philip talks about juggling Les Misérables, Play School and home renovations, and why a team of actors and creative talents are more like an NRL team than you might imagine. He recalls some pivotal performances and explains why a “warm down” might be even more important for a singer than a “warm up”.