Joan Whalley went on to study Speech and Drama through Trinity College, London and for a time was a teacher at her old school.
13 Facts About Joan Whalley
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Joan Whalley commented on her first directing experience at Twelfth Night Theatre,.
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Joan Whalley went on to study a course in theatre production later in the 1950s at the London Actors Studio, a training institution that placed emphasis on a new acting style advocating realism and scorn for inhibitions.
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In 1958, Joan Whalley attended a drama school at the University of New South Wales.
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Joan Whalley succeeded Rhoda Felgate, MBE, who had founded the company in 1936, as artistic director at Twelfth Night Theatre.
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Joan Whalley taught well-known Australian actors, such as Judith McGrath, Sigrid Thornton, Penny Downie, Rowena Wallace, Russell Kiefel, Carol Burns.
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Apart from being artistic director of Twelfth Night Theatre, Joan Whalley was an accomplished actor.
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In 1970, Joan Whalley directed 'Looking Glass on Yesteryear' by playwright Jill Morris, staged before The Queen in the Brisbane City Hall as part of the Captain Cook bicentenary celebrations.
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Joan Whalley was responsible for the building of Twelfth Night Theatre complex at Bowen Hills, which opened in 1971.
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Joan Whalley was a foundation member of the Queensland Theatre Company's board and major contributor to the theatrical community in Brisbane.
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Joan Whalley sat on the Theatre Board for the Australian Council for the Arts, the State Board of the ABC, and the Board of the New Moon Theatre Company in Townsville.
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On 10 June 2002, Joan Whalley was awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia by Queen Elizabeth II.
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Joan Whalley died on 27 August 2021, aged 93 in a nursing home in Beerwah, Queensland.