After 12 years away from the stage, Michelle Holland thought her acting days were behind her. But when the opportunity came along to audition for Shirley Valentine, she decided it was time to take a chance. With the help of her cochlear implant, she has returned to the theatre for the ultimate challenge – performing a two-hour, one-woman show.
Michelle had spent years acting in children’s theatre, enjoying the creativity, friendships and sense of community that came with performing. But as her hearing deteriorated, the practical challenges of being on stage became increasingly difficult.
Michelle began acting at 26 and retired at around 42, when her hearing made continuing too challenging. Her final role was Dinglemouse in BadJelly the Witch. “I thought this was the ultimate role to finish my career on,” Michelle laughs.
“The reality was that if you’re a deaf actor and you’re out the back in the wings in the dark, you can’t speech-read, you can’t hear the cues on stage. It’s extremely tough.”
After stepping away from acting, Michelle went on to receive her cochlear implant in 2013. The difference was life-changing, helping her reconnect with the world around her and return to work. She later worked as a Rehabilitationist with the Southern Cochlear Implant Programme (SCIP), supporting other people on their cochlear implant journeys.
Then came an unexpected opportunity to return to the stage.
When Shirley Valentine, presented by Riccarton Players, came up for auditions, Michelle decided to give it a go. The play, written by Willy Russell, follows Shirley, a middle-aged woman who has lost touch with herself in her marriage and sets out to rediscover who she is.
It is a story about finding your confidence again, embracing change and having the courage to step beyond what feels safe and familiar.
Michelle was thrilled to win the audition. She shared the role with another actor, each performing four shows during the July 2026 season.
Michelle playing Shirley Valentine
But playing Shirley was no small undertaking. With 42 pages of monologue, Michelle had to carry the entire performance herself, remembering every line while bringing the character’s story to life.
“Honestly – I couldn’t have got my lines down without my recordings in my cochlear implant all day every day, and taking direction from the production team, impossible!”
Her cochlear implant played a crucial role in how she prepared. Michelle recorded the script and listened to it repeatedly, building her knowledge of the dialogue layer by layer.
Being able to listen to the script made an enormous difference. It also meant Michelle could hear the director’s instructions and take on feedback during rehearsals — things that would have been extremely difficult before her implant.
“I could not have done it without my cochlear implant. That’s an absolute fact, because I couldn’t have learned it in an auditory fashion. I couldn’t have heard the director when she was directing me.”
Performing with a cochlear implant did require some adjustments. She needed to be close to the director and concentrate when receiving feedback, rather than trying to hear instructions from across the theatre. She also couldn’t rely on hearing the musical cues from the wings, so the stage manager helped her onto the stage at the appropriate moments.
These practical considerations didn’t stop her from performing. Instead, they became part of the preparation that allowed her to succeed.
Telling Shirley’s story
For Michelle, the greatest achievement wasn’t simply getting through the performance. It was reaching the point in rehearsals when the director was happy that she had mastered the role.
“Once that happened, once the director was happy, then the rest of it was never about me and it was all about the story being told to the people in the audience, because that was the most important thing.”
She sees Shirley’s story as one that resonates with women of all ages.
“It’s basically about a woman who’s lost herself in a marriage and finds herself again. So, she doesn’t actually become somebody else. She just goes back to who she originally was before she lost herself.”
For her, the play was also an opportunity to challenge herself and discover what was possible.
“I think it’s so important as we get older, we need to push ourselves to do new and different things, to keep our vitality and just to keep life interesting.”
Her family came along to watch her perform, making the experience even more special. And after years away from the stage, she had rediscovered something she loved.
A whole new world of possibilities
Michelle’s return to acting is another example of how cochlear implants can open doors to opportunities that once seemed out of reach.
She doesn’t take that ability for granted. Every morning, putting on her sound processor reminds her of what they make possible — from listening to music and audiobooks to enjoying the sounds around her on the drive to work.
“I’m the happiest person in the world because I know that without a cochlear implant, I couldn’t have done either of those things.”
The chance to perform Shirley Valentine brought that gratitude into sharp focus. Michelle might never have auditioned without her implants, let alone learned and performed such a demanding role.
“I wouldn’t have auditioned. There would have been no point,” she says. “Whereas it’s basically given me that opportunity to come out of retirement and give it a go, and it was a fantastic experience.”
For anyone thinking about giving acting a go, Michelle has some simple advice: start with your local theatre, particularly children’s theatre, where newcomers can learn and build confidence in a welcoming environment.
“Theatre people are just the loveliest people in the world. They become your family for all the time you’re rehearsing and doing the show.”
After more than 30 years, Michelle is still friends with people she performed with in her twenties. Returning to the stage has given her the chance to reconnect with that community, share a powerful story, and prove to herself that retirement doesn’t have to mean the end of a passion.
And with her cochlear implant helping her learn, listen and take direction, Michelle has shown that sometimes the next chapter begins when you dare to give something another go.