Actor Carly Street (Mark O'Neill/Toronto Sun)

From a casting director’s point of view, she’s quite a package: Beauty enough to inform a heart-breaking Ophelia; passion enough to fire a devastating Juliet; wit enough to make a magnificent Beatrice and drive enough to launch a monumental Lady Macbeth.

And if that’s not enough, Carly Street also demonstrates the kind of comedic timing that leads one to suspect she could throw together a pretty impressive Malvolio or Sir Andrew Aguecheek without breaking much of a sweat.

So just what is this promising and largely unknown 20-something actress with a passion for the Bard doing wandering around Middle-earth, preparing for the much anticipated world premiere of The Lord Of The Rings at the Princess of Wales Theatre?

Playing Arwen, Elf Princess, of course — opposite such notable classical actors as Brent Carver, Michael Therriault, Evan Buliung, Dion Johnstone and Richard McMillan.

World premieres and humongous budgets notwithstanding, the common factor that has drawn them all to this project is the chance to work with acclaimed director Matthew Warchus, whose classical credentials are pretty impressive, ranging from the Shakespearean canon to such modern fare as Art.

Even so, when Street first heard about the Toronto premiere of the work, “I wasn’t wildly interested,” she recalls over lunch. “But I did my homework. I got more information and I thought, ‘Oh, this is just right. I should do this.’ ”

A graduate of Montreal’s National Theatre School, the Toronto-born Street figured that a stint with Warchus would fit quite nicely into the the career she dedicated herself to back when she convinced her parents to allow her to enroll in the Etobicoke School Of Art.

Career-wise, after a few seasons at Stratford and some time “bopping around the regionals,” the chance to participate in a world premiere of a major new work opposite some fine talent under the direction of an acclaimed director fit right in to her plans to broaden her resume.

At her age, it’s all about keeping your eye on bigger things down the road, she says.

“Young actors are interesting,” she explains with a throaty chuckle, “but older actors are even more interesting.”

Clearly, she’s not content to be just another pretty face. In fact, as she sees it, she’s never been just another pretty face.

“I think I’m blessed with a kind of decent level of attractiveness,” Street demurs in a no-nonsense style that rings more of honesty than modesty. “I’m not a great beauty — but I’m also not homely and (because of that) I’ve been allowed to play a huge spectrum in this industry.”

That opportunity, however, comes with strings attached, as she sees it.

“My selling point is not my looks, so I better get damn better at this,” she says.

While the role of Arwen isn’t huge — “Her world is very much isolated to a few people because she’s not a member of the Fellowship,” Street explains — it is pivotal. And for Street, it represents another step toward where she’s headed.

“I keep getting cast as these women who have a huge capacity to love — so this is a journey I’m on,” she says — and she’s not complaining.

“There are these women who are archetypes who stand for something much bigger — like undying love.” Of course, it hasn’t escaped her attention that in the main, Lord Of The Rings, like many other stories, is a story in which women can only hope to play supporting roles.

“But there is a time when I have to let my politics fade into the far distance,” she says, adding that the sexual politics of theatre are no different than they are most places.

Making it clear that she is speaking about a world beyond Middle-earth, she says, “My sister is a Bay St. gonzo and she talks about the practices in her environment,” Street explains, adding that the only major difference is that, in theatre, sexual politics are disguised “behind a wider scope.” Still, while she never loses that awareness, it has to be pushed into the background once she starts to perform.

“I can’t spend any time thinking about it because I have to play the circumstances of the world of the theatre,” she says.

And, quite simply, that world is her life.

“This has always come first for me,” she insists, deftly ducking questions about romance. “I have to keep it on the stage and keep it out of my life — ’cause I’m susceptible,” she insists.

So, with The Lord Of The Rings representing the major man in her life — at least for now — she’s pretty positive about the future.

Asked where she sees herself in 10 years time, she unleashes a smile that can only be described as dazzling.

“I want to be doing Shakespeare in London. I would like to do some new work in New York — more adventures, more stories.”

The eyes blaze and the voice purrs like a finely tuned engine.

“Whether it be Toronto, London, or New York, I want to be with people who are passionate about their stories.”

This Street just might lead us to the next big thing in theatre.