Tonya Cornelisse is an award-winning actress and voice over artist known for her versatile career spanning film, television, and theatre across both the US and the UK. She’s just wrapped the upcoming action-packed Empire City with Gerard Butler. She recurs as the adult Allie Stevens in the hit Showtime series Yellowjackets. Other significant TV work includes starring in the comedy series Hitmen (SKY/NBC) and guest appearances in major shows like Parks and Recreation and How to Get Away with Murder. In film, Tonya’s credits range from Nick Cassavetes’ Yellow to Francis Lawrence’s Slumberland to leads in many independent films premiering at the Sundance Film Festival (including Dog Lovers that she also wrote) and other prestigious platforms. Her performance in the film Liminal garnered her multiple Best Actress awards from around the world. She has been honored by BFI, Sundance FF, Chicago International FF, NICE, TIFF, and Outer Critics Circle awards among others.

The stage came first. Tonya started working professionally in the theatre before she learned to drive. At age twelve she cut her teeth as Felix Unger in The Odd Couple, no doubt that was not to be missed, this was followed up as a Stoat in The Wind and The Willows where she was able to show off her skills as a trained dancer. She has performed on and off Broadway in New York City and toured all over America. Appearing most recently in London’s theatre scene, her starring role in the new play Until She Sleeps was acclaimed by critics as a “masterclass in acting”. Tonya is a lifetime member of Bobby Moresco’s The Actors Gym and Ensemble Studio Theatre.

A force in the theatre scene, Tonya was the recipient of the Best Supporting Actress award at The Humana Festival by the Actors Theatre of Louisville and the Theatre Critics Circle Association. Broadway: revival of Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf. Off Broadway: The Public Theatre, the Cherry Lane Theatre, Darryl Roth Theatre, Atlantic Theatre Company, Ensemble Studio Theatre, the WhiteFire Theatre and more. She is a proud member of Academy Award winner Bobby Moresco Actors Gym and Ensemble Studio Theatre NY/LA.

VOICEOVER

An accomplished voice-over artist, she helmed the reins for Lexus for 5 years. She is an award winning narrator for Penguin Random House, Audible and Findaway Voices among others. Tonya’s other campaigns include Dove, Lipton Tea, Hellman’s & Nike. As a child, Tonya’s natural husky voice was often confused for her husky-framed father when answering the family phone.

WRITING

Tonya has penned a number of screenplays, plays and poems including Dog Lovers, which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival. She created and wrote the award winning Fox Searchlight webisode turned rock musical Crack Whore Galore. Her play Barbaric Therapy was commissioned to be developed with Ensemble Studio Theatre NY/LA.

EDUCATION & TRAINING Tonya hails from NYC’s Tisch School of the Arts where she double majored in theatre and psychology. Studying Shakespeare through RADA’s intensive in NYC. Luck struck when she fell into the hands of her mentor Alan Arkin and performed in his long form improv troupe. Tonya studied privately with the late-greats acting maestros Harold Guskin, George DiCenzo & Stan Kirsch.

She is now based in both London and NYC, but continues to work all over the world. She bunks up with her husband and her ginger goldendoodle TOAST!

AWL Credits

Non-AWL Credits

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