After leaving Mountview in 1999, he joined an acting ensemble at the National Theatre, where he appeared in Troilus and Cressida, Candide, and The Darker Face of the Earth.

They include: Death and the King's Horseman, The Tempest, Sammy Davis Jr. in The Rat Pack: Live From Las Vegas, RENT, 125th Street, and Jailhouse Rock.

He was nominated for Best Supporting Actor in a Musical for his appearance in Jailhouse Rock, Best Takeover in a Role for The Rat Pack: Live From Las Vegas as Sammy Davis Jr., and for Best Ensemble Performance in Avenue Q.

In 2015 and 2016 he appeared at Shakespeare's Globe Theatre, firstly in King John followed by The Merchant Of Venice, a production starring Jonathan Pryce which toured America, China and Italy.

In 2016 Terera appeared in the National Theatre's award-winning production of Ma Rainey's Black Bottom, reportedly spending several months learning to play the double bass for the role.

His first documentary, Muse of Fire, created with Dan Poole, centres on modern perspectives of Shakespeare, featuring interviews with actors and filmmakers such as Judi Dench, Ian McKellen, Jude Law, Julie Taymor, Fiona Shaw and Baz Luhrmann.