Once Upon a Drag Storytime - Going for Gold

Stephen Nicolazzo is a Melbourne based theatre director. He studied at The University of Melbourne (Creative Arts) and National Institute of Dramatic Art (Directing).

Stephen is the founder of Little Ones Theatre, an independent company focused on innovative queer theatre-making. Little Ones was established in 2009 and has had sell-out seasons across Australia. Their productions are bold, brash and energetic interpretations of queer classics that celebrate a highly theatrical aesthetic. Little Ones Theatre is Nicolazzo, designers Eugyeene Teh, Katie Sfetkidis and Daniel Nixon.

He is a Green Room Award winner for Best Direction (The Happy Prince, 2017) and has been nominated a further three times in the Major Companies and Independent categories (The Moors, 2017, Dracula, 2015 and Psycho Beach Party, 2013). His works have won 12 Green Room Awards and a Sydney Theatre Award. They have been nominated for a total of 39 Green Room Awards and 6 Sydney Theatre Awards. Stephen was also the recipient of the Besen Family Artist Program award in 2009 with Malthouse Theatre and in 2015 he received a PlayKing funding award to work in Singapore with Alfian Bin Sa'at and Wild Rice Theatre Company.

He is a member of the 2019 Lincoln Center Theater Director’s Lab (New York City) and is an artistic community representative on Arts House’s 2020 Advisory Panel.

He has directed for Melbourne Theatre Company, Malthouse Theatre, Griffin Theatre Company, Arts Centre Melbourne, Arts House, Performance Space, Yirramboi Festival, La Boite Theatre, Brisbane Powerhouse, Brisbane Festival, Darwin Festival, Adelaide Cabaret Festival, Melbourne Cabaret Festival, Midsumma Festival, Red Stitch Actor’s Theatre, Theatre Works, Darebin Arts Speakeasy, MKA, and La Mama. His works have been critically acclaimed and toured to sold out houses across the country.

In 2021, Stephen directed the world premiere of Joel Bray’s dance work Considerable Sexual License for YIRRAMBOI Festival and Darebin Arts Speakeasy, which will tour to Brisbane Festival in association with La Boite Theatre. He also directed the re-imagined production of Ash Flanders is Nothing for The Brunswick Ballroom and CYBEC ELECTRIC at Melbourne Theatre Company. He will also be directing the Monash Univerisity Centre of Theatre and Performance final year show, Body Horror.

In 2020, he directed his second collaboration with Christos Tsiolkas and Dan Giovannoni, Loaded, based on Tsiolkas’ debut novel. It premiered at Malthouse Theatre as part of their 2020 season. Due to COVID-19, Loaded was adapted into an audio experience which went on to win 2 Green Room Awards. He also directed the premiere of Ash Flanders’ new work End Of. at Darebin Arts Speakeasy and a return season of Joel Bray’s Daddy at Arts Centre Melbourne as part of Midsumma Festival.

In 2019, Stephen’s multi-award winning production of Merciless Gods had a return season at Arts Centre Melbourne as part of Midsumma Festival and the multi-award winning The Happy Prince had its Sydney premiere at Griffin Theatre Company. He also directed choreographer Joel Bray’s new work for Yirramboi Festival, Daddy, which then toured to Brisbane Festival and Live Works for Performance Space at Carriageworks.

In 2018, Nicolazzo made his Melbourne Theatre Company mainstage debut with a twisted revival of Mike Leigh's cult classic, Abigail's Party (which sold over $1.2 million at the box office), created a follow-up to The Happy Prince, The Nightingale and the Rose at Theatre Works and returned to Red Stitch Actor's Theatre with a new revival of Suddenly Last Summer by Tennessee Williams.

In 2017, Stephen directed Green Room Award winning stage adaptation of Christos Tsiolkas' short story collection, Merciless Gods, by Dan Giovannoni at Griffin Theatre Company in Sydney and at Darebin Arts Speakeasy in Melbourne, both seasons selling out and garnering critical acclaim. Merciless Gods’ Sydney season at Griffin Theatre Company remains the highest selling independent theatre production in the history of Griffin Theatre. Stephen also directed the award nominated Australian premiere of Jen Silverman's play, The Moors at Red Stitch Actor's Theatre. He directed Oscar Wilde's The Happy Prince- a queer fairy tale as part of the Midsumma Festival at La Mama and a re-imagining of Ash Flanders' Playing to Win (also for Midsumma Festival) at Arts Centre Melbourne.

Directing highlights: Daddy (Arts House/Yirramboi), Abigail’s Party (MTC), The Nightingale and the Rose (Theatre Works), Suddenly Last Summer (Red Stitch), Merciless Gods (Arts Centre Melbourne, Griffin Theatre Company/Darebin Arts), The Moors (Red Stitch), The Happy Prince (Griffin Theatre Company/La Mama), Playing to Win (Arts Centre), Meme Girls (Malthouse Theatre), Dracula (Theatre Works), Dangerous Liaisons (MTC Neon/Brisbane Powerhouse/Darwin Festival/Theatre Works), The House of Yes (Theatre Works), Special Victim (Adelaide Cabaret Festival), Salome (Malthouse Theatre), Psycho Beach Party (Theatre Works/ Midsumma Festival/Brisbane Festival), sex.violence.blood.gore (MKA/TRS), Negative Energy Inc. (Theatre Works/Midsumma Festival).

Stephen has assistant directed with Marion Potts (MTC), Sam Strong (MTC), Rodney Fisher (Actor's Centre), Susie Dee (MTC), Chris Kohn (Malthouse Theatre and Chambermade Opera), Lally Katz (Malthouse Theatre and MTC), Brian Lipson and Luke Mullins (MTC, Melbourne Festival).

Stephen is also a teaching artist who is currently teaching Directing and Dramaturgy for Monash University's Centre of Theatre and Performance and Design Realisation at VCA. He has worked as guest lecturer, mentor, and director at VCA, Monash University, St Martin's Youth Arts Centre, RMIT, YGLAM (Merri Health Queer Youth Initiative), Western Edge Youth Arts, Signal- City of Melbourne, Arts Centre Melbourne, Theatre Works Associate Artist Program, Melbourne Festival Director’s Lab and NIDA.

His music video work includes Holiday for Chaingang, Inkstains for Chance Waters, and Awooh & Straight to the Bar for Laura Imbruglia.