[1] Nindethana was established by Charles and Bob Maza at the Pram Factory in Melbourne in 1971,[2][3][4][5] with help from New Zealand-born playwright, theatre director, and actor John Smythe and others.
[6][7] Its stated objective was "the performance, encouragement and promotion of Aboriginal drama, music, art, literature, film production and other such cultural activities in the community".
[8] Their earliest production was The Cherry Pickers, in August 1971,[9] written by Kevin Gilbert and recognised as the first Aboriginal play.
It was filmed at Channel 0 in Melbourne (later part of Network 10), airing in June 1973, which led to other acting opportunities for some of the cast members.
In 1973 the theatre company was awarded a fellowship by the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Arts Board to visit Adelaide, South Australia, to perform at the Adelaide Festival of Arts, as well as Horsham, Murray Bridge and Yalata Aboriginal settlements.