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Silvia Colloca

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Silvia Colloca
Colloca in 2012
Born (1977-07-23) 23 July 1977 (age 48)
Milan, Italy
EducationCentro Teatro Attivo, Milan (1997–2000)
Étoile Ballet Theatre (1999-2001)
Scuola Musicale, Milan (2000-2004)
Occupations
  • Actress
  • producer
  • opera singer
  • author
  • television host
  • blogger
Years active2002–present
Spouse
​
(m. 2004)​
Children3

Silvia Colloca (born 23 July 1977)[1] is an Italian-Australian actress, opera singer, cookbook author, and television series presenter.[2][3][4][5][6] She played Verona in the 2004 vampire film Van Helsing, where she met her husband, Australian actor Richard Roxburgh.[7] She is known in Australia for hosting the cookery show Silvia's Italian Table.[8]

Early life and education

[edit]

Silvia Colloca was born in Milan, Italy, to Loredana and Mario Colloca.[citation needed] Her first job was at a bar in Milan, making cocktails and panini.[9]

From 1997 to 2000, Colloca studied acting at Centro Teatro Attivo in Milan.[1] From 1999 to 2001 she studied dance at Étoile Ballet Theatre.[1] She then trained as an actress and opera singer at Scuola Musicale in Milan for four years,[10][11] from 2000 to 2004.[1] She has also studied a Science of Education degree.[12]

Career

[edit]

A mezzo-soprano singer,[13] Colloca began her stage and musical theatre career in Milan, also performing at London Palladium, Berlin’s Tempodrom and Milan’s Teatro Nazionale.[9] She later moved into English language films.[10] Her first major film role was in 2004 American vampire film Van Helsing, alongside Hugh Jackman, Kate Beckinsale and Richard Roxburgh, in which she played Verona, one of Dracula's brides.

In 2006, Colloca starred opposite Wesley Snipes in action film The Detonator[14] and the following year she appeared with Hayden Christensen, Tim Roth and Mischa Barton in romantic comedy Virgin Territory.[15] She then appeared in 2009 British horror-comedy Lesbian Vampire Killers opposite James Corden.[16] From 2009 to 2010, she had guest roles in Australian television series including Packed to the Rafters,[17] Cops L.A.C.[18] and Rake, the latter starring Roxburgh.[19] Then in 2013 she had a role in Australian psychological thriller feature Nerve.

After Colloca's creative projects dried up, she began writing a family recipe blog. The blog, 'Silvia’s Cucina' gained a loyal following, which led to her cookbook Silvia’s Cucina being published in 2013. The following year, her second book Made in Italy was released,[9] closely followed by the 10-part SBS TV series Made in Italy with Silvia Colloca,[9][20][21][22] which saw Colloca take a film crew home to meet her Italian family, showcasing Abruzzo (where her family is from), Marche, and Molise and using her mother's kitchen to present cucina povera (Italian for 'cuisine of the poor').[21][23] The series earned her a Logie Award nomination for Most Outstanding Newcomer in 2015.[22][24]

In 2015, Colloca appeared as Orfeo in Gluck's Orfeo ed Euridice in Sydney,[11] and the following year, she played The Queen in Lindy Hume's production of Snow White[11] for Opera Queensland and La Boite.[25]

Colloca then co-wrote, co-produced, and hosted Silvia's Italian Table, an eight-part reality and cooking series, which debuted on ABC in October 2016. Each episode involved her inviting a group of celebrities to cook and eat with her and engage in entertaining and intelligent conversation. Guests featured were Kathy Lette, Lisa McCune, Tom Gleeson, Magda Szubanski, Matt Moran, Ken Done, Sarah Ferguson, Merrick Watts, Claire Hooper, Amanda Vanstone, Pia Miranda, and Ian Thorpe.[8][26]

In 2017, Colloca played the recurring role of Lucy Berger in ABC medical drama series Pulse.[27][28]

In November 2020, Colloca began presenting another 10-part TV series, Cook Like an Italian,[29] which premiered on SBS Food. A second season went to air in April 2021 and then a third in May 2022.[30] During this time, Colloca also co-starred with Mark Leonard Winter in 2021 period drama film Little Tornadoes.[31]

Colloca's debut album Sing Like an Italian, was released by Decca Records in October 2022. She performs four numbers alongside arias and art songs by international singers. The album made its debut at number one on the ARIA Core Classical and Classical/Crossover charts.[32][33] and was the second biggest album in that genre in Australia in 2022,[34] topping the Classical Charts for over 20 weeks.[35] That same year, she was invited to perform with Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli at his Sydney concert,[35] and her cookbook, The Italian Home Cook, was published.[36]

That same year, Colloca was also cast in the first season of drama series The Twelve, playing Sonia Spears, alongside Sam Neill, Marta Dusseldorp, and Brendan Cowell.[37] This was followed in 2023, by guest roles in two comedy series – Wellmania opposite Celeste Barber[38] and C*A*U*G*H*T with Matthew Fox and Kick Gurry.[39] She then appeared in 2024 sci-fi supernatural horror film, Sting which featured Ryan Corr, Robyn Nevin and Noni Hazelhurst.[40]

In 2024, Colloca's series Silvia's Italian Masterclass, premiered on Network 10.[22] A third season began airing in October 2025.[35]

Colloca launched her own cookware line Per Silvia, in collaboration with Essteele Cookware. She has also been an Ambassador for the Italian Film Festival for several years.[35]

Personal life

[edit]

Colloca met husband, actor Richard Roxburgh in 2003, at the first script reading for 2004 feature film Van Helsing, in which he played Dracula and she played one of his wives.[7] Colloca recalls: "I was totally enamoured the second I saw him."[7] On 25 September 2004, they were married at the medieval castle of Montalto in Tuscany, Italy.[41][42]

The couple have two sons and a daughter, the latter of whom was born in 2017. Their boys attended school in Italy for a few months in 2017 and are bilingual.[11]

Colloca became an Australian citizen in July 2013.[11]

Awards and nominations

[edit]
Year Work Award Category Result Ref.
2015 Made In Italy Logie Awards Most Outstanding Newcomer Nominated [24]
2021 Simple Italian Booktopia FAB Awards N/a Top 50 Finalist [43]

Filmography

[edit]

Film

[edit]
Year Title Role Notes Ref.
2002 Casomai Cannes award hostess Uncredited
2004 Van Helsing Verona [44]
L'apocalisse delle scimmie Tossica
2006 The Detonator Nadia Cominski Direct-to-video film [14]
2007 Virgin Territory Sister Lisabetta [15]
2009 Lesbian Vampire Killers Carmilla [16]
2013 Nerve Elena
La Finca The Woman Short film
2015 The Tender Dark Mother Short film [45]
Ariadne Rie Lazic Short film
Dante's Hell Animated (aka Inferno Dantesco Animato) Beatrice (voice) Animated short film (Italian version) [46]
2021 Little Tornadoes Maria [31]
2023 The Italian Vacation Dilvia Kolloca Short film
2024 Sting Maria [40]
2026 Dante's Inferni – The Descent into the Underworld Beatrice (voice) Post-production
TBA L'Inferno (Remastered) Beatrice (voice) Post-production

Television

[edit]
Year Title Role Notes Ref.
2003 L'avvocato Tania 6 episodes
2009 Packed to the Rafters Verna 2 episodes [17]
2010 Cops L.A.C. Gabriella Harrison 1 episode [18]
Rake Sonia Dana 1 episode [19]
2014 Made in Italy with Silvia Colloca Presenter 10 episodes [20][21]
2016 Silvia's Italian Table Presenter 8 episodes [8]
2017 Pulse Lucy Berger 3 episodes [27][28]
2020–2022 Cook Like an Italian Presenter Seasons 1-3, 20 episodes [29][30]
2022 The Twelve Sonia Spears Season 1, 9 episodes [37]
2023 Wellmania Gianna 1 episode [38]
C*A*U*G*H*T Princess Depinder 2 episodes [39]
2024–2025 Silvia's Italian Masterclass Presenter Seasons 1-3, 27 episodes [22][35]

Stage

[edit]
Year Title Role Notes Ref.
2012 Blood Wedding The Bride Malthouse Theatre, Melbourne [11][25]
2013 The Bull, The Moon and the Coronet of Stars Marion Stables Theatre, Sydney, Butter Factory Theatre, Wodonga with Griffin Theatre Co, Merrigong Theatre Co & HotHouse Theatre [11][25]
2015 Orfeo ed Euridice Orfeo Art Gallery of NSW, Sydney [11]
2016 Snow White The Queen Roundhouse Theatre, Brisbane with Opera Queensland / La Boite for Brisbane Festival [11][25]

Albums

[edit]
Release Title Label Ref.
2022 Sing Like An Italian Decca Records (4845420) [32]

Books

[edit]
Year Title Publisher Ref.
2013 Silvia's Cucina Penguin Books [9]
2014 Made in Italy Penguin Books [21][9]
2016 La Dolce Vita Penguin Books [47]
2018 Love, Laugh, Bake! Pan Macmillan [48]
2021 Simple Italian: The essentials of Italian home cooking Pan Macmillan [49]
2022 The Italian Home Cook Pan Macmillan [36]
2024 Italian Family Food: Simple Italian food to feed your loved ones Pan Macmillan [50]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c d "Silvia Colloca?" (PDF). mediavisionartists.it. Retrieved 11 May 2026.
  2. ^ "Who is Silvia Colloca?". SBS Food. 16 October 2014. Retrieved 4 December 2015.
  3. ^ Archibald-Binge, Ella (7 January 2015). "I met Dracula and fell in love: Silvia Colloca's journey to Australia". sbs.com.au. Retrieved 4 December 2015.
  4. ^ Taylor, Andrew (5 March 2015). "Silvia Colloca steps out of the kitchen to take on the operatic role of Orfeo". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 4 December 2015.
  5. ^ Taylor, Andrew (7 February 2015). "Silvia Colloca to lead audience through gallery in modern take on Orpheus tragedy". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 4 December 2015.
  6. ^ Archibald-Binge, Ella (7 January 2015). "I met Dracula and fell in love: Silvia Colloca's journey to Australia". SBS World News. Retrieved 22 December 2022.
  7. ^ a b c Archibald-Binge, Ella (7 January 2015). "I met Dracula and fell in love: Silvia Colloca's journey to Australia". SBS. Retrieved 11 May 2026. Cite error: The named reference "ella" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
  8. ^ a b c "Silvia's Italian Table: Complete Series". iview.abc.net.au.
  9. ^ a b c d e f "Cooking & food contributor: Silvia Colloca". bellamumma.com. Retrieved 11 May 2026.
  10. ^ a b "Who is Silvia Colloca?". SBS Food. 16 October 2014. Retrieved 11 May 2026.
  11. ^ a b c d e f g h i "About Silvia". silviascucina.net. Retrieved 11 May 2026.
  12. ^ Cislowska, Tamara-Anna (19 October 2023). "Program: Professional opera singer and chef Silvia Colloca?". SBS Food. Retrieved 12 May 2026.
  13. ^ Hornery, Andrew (5 March 2015). "Silvia Colloca steps out of the kitchen to take on the operatic role of Orfeo". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 12 May 2026.
  14. ^ a b "The Detonator – Full Cast & Crew". TV Guide. Retrieved 11 May 2026.
  15. ^ a b "Virgin Territory – Full Cast & Crew". TV Guide. Retrieved 11 May 2026.
  16. ^ a b "Lesbian Vampire Killers – Full Cast & Crew". TV Guide. Retrieved 11 May 2026.
  17. ^ a b "Packed to the Rafters: episode guide | Series 2". australiantelevision.net. Retrieved 11 May 2026.
  18. ^ a b "Cops L.A.C.: episode guide". australiantelevision.net. Retrieved 11 May 2026.
  19. ^ a b "Rake: episode guide | Series 1". australiantelevision.net. Retrieved 11 May 2026.
  20. ^ a b "Made in Italy with Silvia Colloca". SBS. Retrieved 28 November 2014.
  21. ^ a b c d "Australia's own kitchen goddess Silvia Colloca reveals her culinary secrets on Made in Italy on SBS". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 27 November 2014.
  22. ^ a b c d "Silvia Colloca". pairdmargaretriver.com. Retrieved 11 May 2026.
  23. ^ Thomas, Sarah (25 November 2015). "ABC TV launches 2016 programming with spotlight on local drama". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 12 April 2015.
  24. ^ a b Willis, Charlotte (22 March 2015). "Here's the full List of 2015 Logies nominations". news.com.au. Retrieved 12 May 2026.
  25. ^ a b c d "Silvia Colloca". AusStage. Retrieved 11 May 2026.
  26. ^ "Educational videos for the Australian curriculum". enhancetv.com.au.
  27. ^ a b "Pulse – Full Cast & Crew". TV Guide. Retrieved 11 May 2026.
  28. ^ a b "Pulse: cast". australiantelevision.net. Retrieved 11 May 2026.
  29. ^ a b Knox, David (17 December 2019). "SBS summer highlights". TV Tonight. Retrieved 5 June 2022.
  30. ^ a b Knox, David (21 February 2022). "Upfronts 2022: NITV, SBS Food, World Movies". TV Tonight. Retrieved 5 June 2022.
  31. ^ a b "Little Tornadoes – Full Cast & Crew". TV Guide. Retrieved 11 May 2026.
  32. ^ a b Jo Litson (21 November 2022). "Cooking up an album". Limelight. Retrieved 22 December 2022.
  33. ^ "ARIA Classic Album Chart" (PDF). ARIA Charts. 20 February 2023. Retrieved 19 March 2023.
  34. ^ "ARIA TOP 50 CORE CLASSICAL ALBUMS CHART" (PDF). ARIA Charts. 2022. Retrieved 19 March 2023.
  35. ^ a b c d e "Silvia Colloca". thetalentinkgroup.com. Retrieved 11 May 2026.
  36. ^ a b "The Italian Home Cook". panmacmillan.com.au. Retrieved 11 May 2026.
  37. ^ a b "The Twelve: cast | Series 1". australiantelevision.net. Retrieved 11 May 2026.
  38. ^ a b "Wellmania: cast". australiantelevision.net. Retrieved 11 May 2026.
  39. ^ a b "C*A*U*G*H*T: episode guide". australiantelevision.net. Retrieved 11 May 2026.
  40. ^ a b "Sting – Full Cast & Crew". TV Guide. Retrieved 11 May 2026.
  41. ^ "Silvia Colloca's secret ingredient for the sweet life". dailylife.com.au. 26 July 2015. Retrieved 4 December 2015.
  42. ^ Byrnes, Holly (24 November 2015). "Miranda tapped for Play School role". News.com.au. Retrieved 4 December 2015.
  43. ^ "Meet your 2021 FAB Award Top 50!". booktopia.com.au. 7 February 2022. Retrieved 12 May 2026.
  44. ^ "Van Helsing – Full Cast & Crew". TV Guide. Retrieved 11 May 2026.
  45. ^ "The Tender Dark – Full Cast & Crew". TV Guide. Retrieved 11 May 2026.
  46. ^ Leiber, Sarah Jae (14 October 2020). "DANTE'S INFERNO Films World Premieres Take Over Italy". BroadwayWorld. Retrieved 11 May 2026.
  47. ^ "La Dolce Vita | Silvia Colloca". Penguin Books. Retrieved 11 May 2026.
  48. ^ "Love, Laugh, Bake! | Silvia Colloca". panmacmillan.com.au. Retrieved 11 May 2026.
  49. ^ "Simple Italian: The essentials of Italian home cooking". panmacmillan.com.au. Retrieved 11 May 2026.
  50. ^ "Italian Family Food: Simple Italian food to feed your loved ones". panmacmillan.com.au. Retrieved 12 May 2026.
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