The Dora Mavor Moore Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female in a Principal Role - Play is an annual award celebrating achievements in live Canadian theatre.

The award was discontinued after 2018, and merged with the award for Best Leading Actor (General Theatre) into a single gender-neutral award for Best Leading Performer (General Theatre).^[1]

Year	Winner	Nominated
1981	Roberta Maxwell, Stevie	Michelle Fisk, Loose Ends Lynne Griffin, Arms and the Man Joanne McIntyre, The Crackwalker
1982	Rosemary Dunsmore, Straight Ahead/Blind Dancers	Clare Coulter, Blood Relations Jennifer Phipps, Filumena Fiona Reid, Night and Day
1983	Jennifer Phipps, Sister Mary Ignatius Explains It All For You	Margot Dionne, What Is to Be Done? Mary Haney, Translations Martha Henry, The Crucible
1984	Martha Burns, Trafford Tanzi	Jackie Burroughs, White Biting Dog Rosemary Dunsmore, Single Barbara Gordon, The Dining Room Kate Trotter, Top Girls
1985	Doris Petrie, 'night, Mother	Thuli Dumakude, Poppie Nongena Louise Philippe, De beaux gestes/Beautiful Deeds Jennifer Phipps, L'Amante anglaise Nora McLellan, Uncle Vanya
1986[2]	Martha Burns, The Miracle Worker	Nancy Beatty, The Wedding Script Nora McLellan, Farther West Patricia Phillips, And a Nightingale Sang Joanna Schellenberg, The Miracle Worker
1987[3]	Lally Cadeau, Saturday Sunday Monday	Patricia Collins, Pack of Lies Susan Coyne, Aunt Dan and Lemon Deborah Kipp, Talley & Son Djanet Sears, Other Female Parts
1988[4]	Susan Wright, A Lie of the Mind	Clare Coulter, Peggy's Song Diane D'Aquila, Nothing Sacred Brooke Johnson, Toronto, Mississippi Nancy Palk, I Am Yours
1989[5]	Tanja Jacobs, Under the Skin	Patricia Conolly, The Road to Mecca Seana McKenna, The Road to Mecca Kate Nelligan, Spoils of War Brenda Robins, My Memories of You
1990	Nancy Beatty, Love and Anger	Marianne Copithorne, Laughing Wild Tanja Jacobs, The Man I Love Melody Johnson, The Europeans Kate Trotter, The Father
1991	Seana McKenna, Saint Joan	Robin Craig, A Fertile Imagination Nicola Lipman, Clutching the Heat Fiona Reid, Daylight Saving Tracy Wright, Lion in the Streets
1992	Nicola Cavendish, Shirley Valentine	Sylvie Drapeau, Elvire Jouvet 40 Seana McKenna, Three Sisters Kate Trotter, Summer and Smoke Janet Wright, Not Wanted on the Voyage
1993	Fiona Reid, Fallen Angels	Hazel Desbarats, Fallen Angels Rosemary Dunsmore, Fallen Angels Jani Lauzon, Whale Chick Reid, Crimes of the Heart
1994	Brenda Robins, Dancing at Lughnasa	Michelle Fisk, Homeward Bound Tanja Jacobs, Abundance Nancy Palk, Dancing at Lughnasa Maria Ricossa, The Taming of the Shrew
1995[6]	Fiona Reid, Six Degrees of Separation	Janet-Laine Green, Transit of Venus Rita Howell, The Wooden Hill Joan Orenstein, Transit of Venus Fiona Reid, Hay Fever
1996	Nicola Cavendish, Later Life	Anne-Marie Cadieux, The Seven Streams of the River Ota Joan Heney, The Misfit Yanna McIntosh, A Midsummer Night's Dream Nancy Palk, The Glorious 12th
1997	Lilo Baur, The Three Lives of Lucie Cabrol	Marion Gilsenan, Thirteen Hands Sarah Goggin, Oliver Twist Rochelle Oliver, Death of a Salesman Fiona Reid, Arcadia
1998	Kristen Thomson, Problem Child	Brenda Bazinet, The End of Civilization Colombe Demers, Romeo and Juliet Maggie Huculak, Beating Heart Cadaver Nancy Palk, Molly Sweeney Fiona Reid, A Delicate Balance
1999	Nancy Beatty, Risk Everything	Maja Ardal, Kilt Martha Burns, The Memory of Water Nicola Cavendish, Les Belles soeurs Nancy Palk, Don Carlos
2000	Nora McLellan, Music for Contortionist	Linda Griffiths, Alien Creature Rita Lafontaine, Encore une fois, si vous permettez Yanna McIntosh, Belle Jane Spidell, Motel Helene
2001	Kristen Thomson, I, Claudia[7]	Susan Coyne, An Acre of Time Denise Clarke, Thunderstruck Seana McKenna, Wit Brenda Robins, Slavs
2002	Yanna McIntosh, Skylight	Marie-Hélène Fontaine, Plan B Caroline Gillis, You Are Here Tanja Jacobs, Elisa's Skin Yanna McIntosh, Belle Fiona Reid, Indian Ink Brenda Robins, The Bald Soprano Jenny Young, The Shape of a Girl
2003	Kristina Nicoll, Girl in the Goldfish Bowl	Rosemary Dunsmore, The Domino Heart Kate Hennig, The Danish Play Brooke Johnson, The Gwendolyn Poems Mary Krohnert, The Miracle Worker
2004	Caroline Cave, The Syringa Tree	Martha Burns, Happy Days Nicola Lipman, Simpl Yanna McIntosh, The Syringa Tree Jane Spidell, Blood d'bi young, da kink in my hair
2005	Irene Poole, The Leisure Society	Marie-Hélène Fontaine, Le Collier d'Hélène Carolyn Hetherington, Half Life Melody Johnson, Trout Stanley Alison Sealy-Smith, Cast Iron
2006	d'bi young, blood.claat — one womban story	Christine Brubaker, The Amorous Servant Martha MacIsaac, The Wild Duck Yanna McIntosh, The Monument Karen Robinson, Two Can Play
2007	Seana McKenna, Orpheus Descending	Caroline Cave, John and Beatrice Diane D'Aquila, Leaving Home Meg Roe, Lucy Kristen Thomson, The Chairs
2008	Lally Cadeau, Rose	Megan Follows, Three Sisters Megan Follows, Top Girls Kelli Fox, Top Girls Arsinée Khanjian, The Palace of the End Nicola Lipman, The December Man
2009	Alison Sealy-Smith, A Raisin in the Sun	Monica Dottor, Scratch Nicola Lipman, Another Home Invasion Abena Malika, A Raisin in the Sun Waneta Storms, The Patient Hour
2010	Tara Rosling, If We Were Birds	Laura de Carteret, Hamlet Tara Nicodemo, Hamlet Anusree Roy, Letters to My Grandma Michaela Washburn, Such Creatures
2011	Yanna McIntosh, Ruined	Michelle Monteith, Blasted Anusree Roy, Brothel #9 Pamela Mala Sinha, Brothel #9 Jane Spidell, Peggy Pickit Sees the Face of God - The Africa Trilogy
2012[8]	Pamela Mala Sinha, Crash	Maev Beaty, The Happy Woman Christine Horne, Andromache Nicole Underhay, The Small Room at the Top of the Stairs Michaela Washburn, White Biting Dog
2013	Irene Poole, The Little Years	Maev Beaty, Proud Maev Beaty, Terminus Clare Coulter, LEAR Melody Johnson, Miss Caledonia
2014	Carly Street, Venus in Fur	Lesley Faulkner, Lungs Holly Lewis, Tribes Nancy Palk, Angels in America: Perestroika Fiona Reid, Entertaining Mr Sloane
2015	Nicky Guadagni, Hooked	Maev Beaty, The De Chardin Project Rosemary Dunsmore, Tom at the Farm Alanna Hibbert, The Mountaintop Fiona Reid, Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike
2016	Rebecca Northan, Blind Date	Valerie Buhagiar, Botticelli in the Fire and Sunday in Sodom Sarah Dodd, Mustard Mayko Nguyen, Salt-Water Moon Anusree Roy, Bombay Black
2017	Maev Beaty, The Last Wife	Lisa Berry, Father Comes Home From the Wars (Parts I, II, III) Diane Flacks, Body Politic Katherine Gauthier, A Doll's House Shruti Kothari, Little Pretty and the Exceptional
2018	Michaela Washburn, Confederation & Riel	Vivien Endicott-Douglas, Lo (or Dear Mr. Wells) Seana McKenna, Lear Brenda Robins, A Delicate Balance Michaela Washburn, Scandal & Rebellion

• Toronto Alliance for the Performing Arts - Doras