From Brisbane to the Parade Stage: Matt and Bailey’s Winter at NIDA
As NIDA’s second and third-year students moved deep into rehearsals for the Winter production season, two visitors from Queensland were quietly soaking it all in.
Matthew Wood and Bailey Lowe are third-year students of the Bachelor of Creative Industries (Acting and Performance) course at TAFE Queensland. For a fortnight, they swapped their usual studios in Brisbane for NIDA’s corridors, sitting in on rehearsals, trading notes with peers, and discovered just how far the NIDA Open annual immersion program and a plane ticket can extend an actor’s training.
The opportunity came through a placement program offering TAFE Queensland’s acting cohort a chance to step inside the rhythm of a full-scale production at one of Australia’s leading drama institutions. For Matt and Bailey, the appeal wasn’t just NIDA’s reputation.
“We wanted to engage with like-minded people,” Matthew explained, “People who are part of the bigger acting community across Australia.”
After two weeks, that’s exactly what they found, alongside an immersive exploration of performance through mask work, to dance, to physical theatre.
The two students have unique aspirations, which made the experience valuable in different ways. Matthew has his sights set on starting his own theatre company one day and used the trip to investigate the production side of the industry. He’s also a self-described musical theatre devotee, and Sydney’s stages didn’t disappoint. Bailey’s approach was simpler and just as ambitious: to soak up everything possible. “I want to know everything I can,” he said.
Inside the Rehearsal Room
They sat in on second-year rehearsals for Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night and Much Ado About Nothing and watched a technical run of A Midsummer Night’s Dream, a Winter season production on the Parade Theatre stage directed by Simon Phillips. Watching different directors at work, and the different ways acting is taught from room to room, gave them a broader perspective of their own craft than any single classroom could.
Watching A Midsummer Night’s Dream come together was a highlight for both of them. “They did an amazing job,” Matthew said. The high praise was echoed readily by Bailey, who found himself just as taken with comparing teaching and directing styles as with the production itself. He noted the differences and similarities in how NIDA staff and students approach the craft compared to what he has experienced in his creative training so far.
For Bailey, one specific moment stood out: watching NIDA’s audio and lighting technical production students at work during the Midsummer tech run. “It was amazing seeing the multidisciplinary collaboration,” he said, a reminder that the actors on stage are only part of the story.
Finding a Second Home
What surprised them most wasn’t the technical training; it was the warm reception and inclusive environment. “NIDA students are really welcoming,” Matthew said. “Everyone’s in the same boat, going through the same process. There’s an openness, an expressiveness, a permission to be vulnerable with each other.”
Working with new teachers in unfamiliar spaces could easily have felt daunting, but Matthew and Bailey describe the classes as supportive from their first day. In one movement class with teacher Gavin Robins, balancing and acrobatic work pushed them in ways they hadn’t expected – challenging but deeply fulfilling. The class even paused mid-session to sing Bailey happy birthday, a small gesture that signalled that he belonged.
Bailey is quick to point out that the experience was made more meaningful by sharing it with each other. “It’s been great travelling and having this experience with Matthew,” he said, a reminder that studying away from home is a different experience with a friend alongside you.
Advice for Future Placement Students
Next year, two more TAFE Queensland Acting students will come to NIDA as part of the same placement program. Matthew and Bailey offer them the same advice: don’t come here to prove anything.
“Be ready for anything, be open to learn,” Matthew said. “Everyone’s in the same boat, so you don’t need to prove yourself. The two weeks fly by, enjoy learning and watching other people act.”
Bailey’s advice runs along the same lines: “Don’t worry about trying to impress anyone. Come with an open mind and appreciate the opportunity to learn.” It will, he warns, take you out of your comfort zone. “Be ready to give it your all, and be tired, and feel like you’ve given it your all.”
Taking It Home
Matthew and Bailey have returned to Brisbane to complete the final year of their studies. They bring with them a new sense of belonging in a national community of actors and creative peers.
Stories like Matthew and Bailey’s are a testament of what NIDA offers beyond its mainstage productions and training: a chance for the next generation of Australian performers to see themselves as part of a larger creative and unfolding story.
