Simon Porro (he/him) is a theatre director, educator, and performance maker based in Naarm/Melbourne. A current student at the Victorian College of the Arts (VCA), he has collaborated on new and adventurous work as co-founder of independent theatre company Extended Play since 2018. He strives to create bold, honest, and open-hearted theatre that encourages his audience to look inward; to find themselves in the other, rediscover what is truly important to them, and see their world in bright neon colours.

In 2025, he will direct the first Melbourne staging of Kindness by Matthew Whittet, with creative mentorship from Australian theatre director and arts leader Sam Strong. His other experience will also include directing secondments with Mark Wilson at Melbourne Theatre Company, Ian Michael at Malthouse Theatre, Sarah Goodes at Sydney Theatre Company, and Gary Abrahams at Red Stitch Actors’ Theatre.

Directing credits include Human Days (2023), Antigone (2019), and A Bit Like Flying (2018). Additional credits at the VCA include The Little Prince (2024; a multidisciplinary collaboration with VCA Theatre, Dance, Interactive Composition, Animation, and Visual Art), Yesterday’s Tomorrow (2024, VCA Writers’ Festival), and the world premiere of The Bank by Melissa Reeves (2024, Assistant Director, dir. Daniela Farinacci).

Simon also holds a Bachelor of Performance from AIM Dramatic Arts (formerly known as the Australian Academy of Dramatic Art) and a Master of Teaching from the University of Sydney.

A full CV is available upon request.