Whether you’re desperate for drama, craving a crime-fuelled comedy or susceptible to a little bit of Shakespeare, NIDA alumni are lighting up screens and stages across Australia. Read on to discover where you can catch our graduates in action this March.
Murray Bartlett (Acting, 1991) will play the power-hungry Plutonovich in the Disney+ series O’Dessa, streaming from 13 March. This genre-bending sci-fi rock opera follows young hero O’Dessa (Sadie Sink) as she battles the tyrant in a post-apocalyptic world, with a dangerously catchy soundtrack.
On Stan now, don’t miss the hilarious crime series Good Cop Bad Cop, where a star-studded lineup of NIDA alumni brings a quirky cast of characters to life. Devon Terrell (Acting, 2013) and Jeanette Cronin (Acting, 1986) play leading roles in this chaotic series about a small-town police force, alongside an impressive roster of talent including Debra Lawrance (Acting, 1977), Matthew Backer (Acting, 2010), and Tyler Coppin (Acting, 1979), Nathin Art Butler (Acting, 2005), Steven Tandy (Acting, 1971 & Directing, 1995), Ashan Kumar (Acting, 2021), Jack Ellis (Acting, 2014), Roman Delo (Acting, 2019), Christine Amor (Acting, 1971), Thomas Russell, (Acting, 2019) Alexander Champion De Crespigny (Diploma of Stage and Screen Performance, 2021), Kim Lewis (Acting, 1987) and Harlee Timms (Acting, 2022). The series also presents the creative vision of Art Director Tuesday Stone (Design, 2004), ensuring a visually captivating experience to complement the absurd township shenanigans.
Repeat offender? Comedy, and chaos collide in Spit, hitting cinemas on 6 March. David Wenham reprises the role after 20 years as ex-con Johnny ‘Spit’ Spitieri arrives in Australia under a false identity, only to find himself locked up and in the crosshairs of cops, criminals, and corruption investigators. Is he a mastermind or just a master of talking his way out of trouble? Spit features a stellar cast including Lewis Fitz-Gerald (Acting, 1978), Anita Hegh (Acting, 1994), Andrea Moor (Acting, 1985), and Sofya Gollan (Acting, 1992), who also serves as the film’s deaf cultural consultant, and with art direction by David Valencia (Acting, 2011).
Brace yourself for drama and mystery when The Last Anniversary premieres on Binge from 27 March. Joining a fantastic cast are NIDA alumni, Uli Latukefu (Acting, 2012), Susan Prior (Acting, 1991), Emily Havea (Acting: Musical Theatre Stream, 2014), and Caroline Levien (Writing for Performance, 2021). With art direction by Patrick Howe (Masters of Design for Performance, 2018) and stunts by Aidan Gillett (Acting, 2007), this series is set to unearth family secrets that will keep you on the edge of your seat.
From 1 March – 5 April, Bell Shakespeare presents Henry 5 at the Sydney Opera House, a riveting retelling of Shakespeare’s epic tale of power and sacrifice. Directed by Marion Potts (Directing, 1991) and returning to Bell Shakespeare after 15 years, this production follows young King Henry V as he leads England to a triumphant, if costly, victory in France. Henry 5 will star JK Kazzi (Acting, 2023), Odile le Clezio (Acting, 1982 & Masters of Voice, 2018), Harrison Mills (Acting, 2024) and Ziggy Resnick (Acting, 2020), with lighting by Verity Hampson (Technical Production, 2005) and voice direction by Jack Starkey-Gill (Masters of Voice, 2021).
Get thee to the theatre! Shakespeare takes another turn later in the month with Ophelia Thinks Harder, running at Sydney’s KXT on Broadway from 14 – 29 March. This fierce and witty reimagining of Hamlet puts Ophelia at the centre of the story and features NIDA alumni Shaw Cameron (Acting, 2021), Julie Bettens (Acting, 2021), and Pat Mandziy (Acting, 2020), with Set Designers Hannah Yardley (Design, 2021) and Jimi Rawlings (Technical Theatre and Stage Management, 2022), and Lighting Designer Sophie Parker (Diploma of Live Production and Technical Services, 2016). This production offers a fresh and provocative take on a story you already know… or do you?
From 1 – 21 March, Melbourne Theatre Company is staging the award-winning play and cautionary tale, The Robot Dog. Directed by Amy Sole (Directing, 2022), starring Ari Maza Long (Acting, 2024) with Lighting Designer Ben Brockman (Production, 2011), this all-too-believable dark comedy centres around an interracial couple that moves into an AI-controlled home and the chaos that ensues. Can their quirky, high-tech house help them connect to culture and each other, or will it create an insurmountable divide?
Who wants to be a producer? The Producers hits the Hayes Theatre stage on 29 March, for night after night of musical mayhem. Mel Brooks’ iconic comedy follows a scheming producer and his nervous accountant as they attempt to stage the biggest flop in Broadway history, only for things to go disastrously right. Featuring NIDA alum Paloma Renouf (Musical Theatre, 2023), with a brilliant creative team including Set Designer Nick Fry (Design for Performance, 2016 & Masters of Design, 2018), Lighting Designer Ryan McDonald (Technical Theatre and Stage Management, 2019), Costume Designer Benedict Janeczko-Taylor (Design for Performance, 2022), Associate Costume Designer Sam Hernandez (Costume, 2024), and Sound Designer Zac Saric (Technical Theatre and Stage Management, 2021).
Plot twist! Helen Dallimore (Acting, 1995) has been unmasked as the voice of MAFS, narrating the blossoming romances and explosive dramas with her characteristic tongue in cheek sense of humour that audiences have come to love. MAFS is streaming now on 9Now.
*Header image: Murray Bartlett (Acting, 1991) in O’DESSA. Photo by Erika Milutin Diller, Courtesy of Searchlight Pictures. © 2025 Searchlight Pictures All Rights Reserved.