Josie Alibrandi is in her final year of high school. Whip-smart and aspirational, she is a third-generation Italian teenager and scholarship kid, with the shadow of a family curse and a penchant for rulebreaking. Juggling grades, boys, and the claustrophobia of an overbearing nonna and saintly mother, Josie’s life becomes tangled in the webs of class, identity, and family history as she finds her place in a changing world.

Iconic novel and cult movie, Looking for Alibrandi is the honest and empowered portrait of 1990s Mediterranean culture that spoke for the first time about systemic racism in Australia from a migrant perspective. It defined a generation and to this day resonates with those caught in the stranglehold of identity and othering in this country. Director Stephen Nicolazzo (Loaded, Merciless Gods) brings Melina Marchetta’s best-selling novel to the stage for the first time, where Vidya Rajan’s adaptation will join three generations of women in a passionate, heart wrenching, and unmissable rendering of the Australian classic.

The Malthouse season for Looking for Alibrandi was completely sold out and its season extended due to popular demand. it received acclaim from critics and audiences alike with standing ovations at most performances. The season at Belvoir garnered further critical acclaim and an overwhelming response from audiences and the season sold out.

Looking for Alibrandi was nominated for Best Casting of a Theatre Production by the Casting Guild of Australia and won two Drama Victoria Awards for its Educational Resources. It featured in the best of stage wrap up in The Australian and the Top 10 Theatre Shows of 2022, Theatre First by Keith Gow.

Playwright Vidya Rajan was nominated for an AWGIE award (Australian Writers Guild) for the adaptation in 2024.

In 2025, as part of director Stephen Nicolazzo’s new position as Artistic Director of Brink Productions, a remount of Looking for Alibrandi featuring some new cast members will be touring Australia. The work will be travelling to Queensland, NSW, Victoria, Tasmania, and South Australia to twelve venues.

With: Chanella Macri, Lucia Mastrantone, Jennifer Vuletic, Ashley Lyons, John Marc Desengano, and Hannah Monson (2022 seasons)

With: Chanella Macri, Lucia Mastrantone, Jennifer Vuletic, Ashton Malcom, Chris Asimos, Riley Warner (2025 national tour)

Director: Stephen Nicolazzo

Adaptor: Vidya Rajan

Set and Costume Design: Kate Davis

Lighting Design: Katie Sfetkidis

Sound Design and Composition: Daniel Nixon

Dramaturgy: Louise Gough and Dom Mercer

Choreography: Rosa Voto

Assistant Directors: Tansy Gorman and Stephanie Lee

Stage Manager: Cecily Rabey (2022), Jacinta Anderson (2025)

Assistant Stage Manager: Harry Dowling (2022), Ashlee Scott and Charlotte Welden (2025)

★★★★★ “Clever, funny, heartening and well-crafted” Theatre Matters

★★★★★ “This theatrical adaptation by State Theatre Company South Australia and Brink Productions captures the voice and heart of Josephine Alibrandi beautifully. Looking for Alibrandi is a stunning adaptation of a book that so many Australians hold dear. With humour, heart, and good cooking, this play is a must-see before it closes.” Glam Adelaide

★★★★★ “Laugh out loud funny and poignant in equal measure.”The Clothesline

★★★★★ “It’s a production as rich as a pot of Nonna’s sugo – deeply flavoured, simmered with love, and impossible to forget. Much better than the store bought Leggo’s.” James Murphy, Scenster

★★★★1/2 “Comical and beautifully honest…a joyous and poignant experience” Arts Hub

★★★★ “Suddenly I was that awkward teenager again, and that is what makes great story telling. The ability to transport you to another place and time. To engulf you in a world that is not your own and yet feels so familiar. That is the magic of Looking for Alibrandi. A magic that continues to warm people’s hearts thirty years after Marchetta’s pen first touched the page” The AU Review

★★★★ “A heart-warming tale whose humour, honesty, radiant social relevance and narrative longevity can survive not only novel and film incarnations, but now, I’m delighted to report, a stage play too." Theatre Now

★★★★ “Looking for Alibrandi provides a rich tapestry of perspectives that resonate with contemporary audiences both young and old, and the diverse and large opening night audience frequently laughed and silently shed tears at what unfolded on stage.” Arts Hub (2025 season)

★★★★ “Whether you read Marchetta’s novel growing up or are unfamiliar with the source material, this production is worth the time of any Australian who knows (or will soon know) what it’s like to navigate the tough decisions in life.” Tim Garrat, Theatre Matters (2025 season)

★★★★ “This is a spirited, enjoyable performance and on a cold winter’s night, it left my heart feeling a little warmer and a little more Italian.” Dragica Jukic, Sydney Arts Guide