Image credit: Courtesy of ABC
ABC TV’s four-part musical drama series In Our Blood inspired by Australia’s radical response to AIDS in the early 1980’s was created by NIDA alumni Adriano Cappelletta (Acting, 2003). Adriano first wrote the play in 2019, called Never Let Me Go, which was set against the backdrop of the anthemic songs of the time as Australia led the world in its response to AIDS in the 80s. Adriano describes it as “set in the time when people in the gay community were dying. Imagine being 23 and losing half of your friends. I always wanted to do a play with songs, and music was a way to access the internal world of the characters, to connect with them emotionally. I saw how the narrative could be realised with songs, as well as tell a story.”
Adriano also appears as Gamma a singing chorus member of the cast and is joined by fellow alumni on screen including Nicholas Brown (Acting, 2000) as Paul, Genevieve Hegney (Acting, 1999), Anita Hegh (Acting, 1994) as Clara Jones, Wendy P Mocke (Acting, 2017) as Sister Esther, Garth Holcombe (Acting, 2006) as Jamie, Andrea Moor (Acting, 1985) as Margaret, Scott Johnson (Acting, 1996) as Constable Barnaby and Nicholas Cooper (Acting, 2005) as Vinnie. Sally Riley (Acting, 1992) Head of ABC Scripted Production serves as Executive Producer.
Image credit: Courtesy of ABC
In Our Blood tells the story of people from politics, medicine and affected communities grappling separately with a terrifying new disease. With no cure in sight, they realise they must all work together to succeed, requiring something truly radical: trust. In the face of moral crusaders and public panic, these courageous, disparate groups join forces to stop the spread of AIDS and save thousands of lives.
In Our Blood is available now on ABC iView.
