Russell Dykstra (born 31 December 1966) is an Australian actor of screen, stage and TV.

Early life

Dykstra grew up in the

Brisbane Brisbane ( ; ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and largest city of the States and territories of Australia, state of Queensland and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia, with a ...

suburb of Calamvale. Dykstra first appeared on stage at age 10 in a theatre production of ''

Toad of Toad Hall ''Toad of Toad Hall'' is a play written by A. A. Milne – the first of several dramatisations of Kenneth Grahame's 1908 novel ''The Wind in the Willows'' – with incidental music by Harold Fraser-Simson. It was originally produced by William ...

''. He later studied acting at the

University of Southern Queensland The University of Southern Queensland is a public research university based in Toowoomba, Queensland, Australia, the sixth largest city in the Australian state of Queensland Founded in 1967 after a successful campaign by the local Darling Down ...

, graduating with a Diploma of Creative Arts in 1987, and in his early career worked alongside fellow actor

Geoffrey Rush Geoffrey Roy Rush (born 6 July 1951) is an Australian actor. Known for often playing eccentric roles on both stage and screen, he has received List of awards and nominations received by Geoffrey Rush, numerous accolades, including an Academy Aw ...

with the Grin and Tonic theatre troupe. Dykstra also studied at the school of Jacques Lecoq in Paris and

Philippe Gaulier Philippe Gaulier is a French master clown, pedagogue, and professor of theatre. He is the founder of École Philippe Gaulier, a French theatre school in Étampes, outside Paris. He studied under Jacques Lecoq in the mid-1960s and was an instr ...

in London.

Career

Dykstra made his feature film debut in the critically acclaimed '' Soft Fruit'', directed by Christina Andreef, for which he received an AFI Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role (1999) and a Film Critics’ Circle Award nomination (2000). Dykstra's one-man show ''Children of the Devil'' had previously toured nationally in 1996–98 with funding from the

Australia Council Creative Australia, formerly known as the Australia Council for the Arts and the Australia Council, is the country's official arts council, serving as an arts funding and advisory body for the Government of Australia. The council was announ ...

, earning him a Matilda Award and a Victorian Green Room Award nomination for Best Actor. In 2007 Dykstra was nominated for an AFI Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance in '' Romulus, My Father'' directed by Richard Roxburgh. Romulus, My Father (film), Wikipedia retrieved 12/04/13 Other film appearances include '' Oranges and Sunshine'', '' Clubland'', ''

Lantana ''Lantana'' () is a genus of about 150 species of perennial plant, perennial flowering plants in the verbena family, Verbenaceae. They are native to tropics, tropical regions of the Americas and Africa but exist as an introduced species in num ...

'', '' Garage Days'', ''

Ned Kelly Edward Kelly (December 185411 November 1880) was an Australian bushranger, outlaw, gang leader, bank robber and convicted police-murderer. One of the last bushrangers, he is known for wearing armour of the Kelly gang, a suit of bulletproof ...

'', '' The View from Greenhaven'', '' The Wannabes'' and '' Hey, Hey, It's Esther Blueburger''. Dykstra's theatre credits are extensive, including '' God of Carnage'', '' The Wonderful World of Dissocia'', ''The Unlikely Prospect of Happiness'', for the

Sydney Theatre Company Sydney Theatre Company (STC) is an Australian theatre company based in Sydney, New South Wales. The company performs in the Wharf Theatre at Dawes Point in The Rocks area of Sydney as well as the Roslyn Packer Theatre (formerly Sydney Theatre ...

and '' Babyteeth'', ''Ray’s Tempest'', ''The Underpants'', ''

The Laramie Project ''The Laramie Project'' is a 2000 American play by Moisés Kaufman and members of the Tectonic Theater Project (specifically, Leigh Fondakowski, writer-director; Stephen Belber, Greg Pierotti, Barbara Pitts, Stephen Wangh, Amanda Gronich, Sar ...

'', ''Yibiyung'' and '' The Ham Funeral'' for Company B. His performances in ''

Toy Symphony The Toy Symphony (original titles: ''Berchtoldsgaden Musick'' or ''Sinphonia Berchtolgadensis'') is a symphony in C major dating from the 1760s with parts for toy instruments, including toy trumpet, Ratchet (instrument), ratchet, bird calls (cucko ...

'' and '' Stuff Happens'' earning him national theatre

Helpmann Awards The Helpmann Awards are accolades for live entertainment and performing arts in Australia, presented by industry group Live Performance Australia (LPA) since 2001. The annual awards recognise achievements in the disciplines of musical theatre ...

for Best Supporting Actor in 2006 and 2008 and a Sydney Theatre Award (2007). Dykstra has also worked with the Malthouse Theatre, Theatre of Image, Griffin Theatre, Ensemble, La Boite Theatre and Queensland Theatre Company. Television credits include the Australian TV series '' Spirited'', '' Wild Boys'', '' My Place'', '' Scorched'', '' BlackJack (film series)'', ''Loot'', '' All Saints'' and '' White Collar Blue''. Dykstra is perhaps most well known for his portrayal of the character Barney, in the award-winning ABC TV series ''

Rake Rake may refer to: Common meanings * Rake (tool), a horticultural implement, a long-handled tool with tines * Rake (stock character), a man habituated to immoral conduct * Rake (poker), the commission taken by the house when hosting a poker game ...

''. In 2013 Dykstra appeared as Uncle Fester in the Australian production of the Broadway musical ''

The Addams Family The Addams Family is a fictional family created by American cartoonist Charles Addams. They originally appeared in a series of 150 standalone single-panel comics, about half of which were originally published in ''The New Yorker'' between 193 ...

''. For this performance Dykstra was honored with his third Helpmann Award, for Best Male Actor in a Supporting Role in a Musical (2013). Dykstra played Pumbaa in the Australian tour of Disney's ''

The Lion King ''The Lion King'' is a 1994 American animated musical coming-of-age drama film directed by Roger Allers and Rob Minkoff, produced by Don Hahn, and written by Irene Mecchi, Jonathan Roberts, and Linda Woolverton. Produced by Walt Disney ...

''. For this performance Dykstra received a Sydney Theatre Award nomination for Best Performance by an Actor in a Musical (2013) and was nominated Best Male Actor in a Supporting Role in a Musical at the 14th Annual

. In 2015 Dykstra won his second Equity Award, for Most Outstanding Ensemble in a Drama Series, for his portrayal of Barney in the ABC TV series ''

''. In 2016 Dykstra received an AACTA Award Nomination for Best Supporting Actor in a Television Drama for his performance as Barney in season 4 of ''

''. More recently Dykstra portrayed Lester in the Matchbox Pictures production '' Irreverent'' streaming on

Peacock Peafowl is a common name for two bird species of the genus '' Pavo'' and one species of the closely related genus '' Afropavo'' within the tribe Pavonini of the family Phasianidae (the pheasants and their allies). Male peafowl are referred t ...

in the US and Netflix Australia. He also appeared in the ABC TV series '' Fires'' and '' In Limbo'' produced by Bunya Productions. In 2024 Dykstra appeared in the ABC TV production of '' Ladies in Black''. Dykstra was honoured as a Fellow of the University at

(USQ)on September 26, 2024.

Filmography

Film

Television

Theatre

As actor

As devisor / director

https://shanahan.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/DYKSTRA-Russell-131124.pdf

Awards and nominations

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Dykstra, Russell Australian male film actors Australian male television actors Australian male stage actors Helpmann Award winners Living people Male actors from Brisbane 1966 births 20th-century Australian male actors 21st-century Australian male actors