Long-term COVID impacts beset sector

The cumulative impact of repeated cancellations and lost work opportunities will affect the sector for years to come.

With health impacts including fatigue, lung and heart damage, and problems with memory and concentration, Long COVID is something we’ll be dealing with collectively for some time.

‘When our schedule is now filled up with a backlog of work that was made a while ago, I don’t have the ability to offer new commissions to people, because we’re still having to complete [those works and] bring these beautiful shows to the stage.

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Richard Watts OAM is ArtsHub's former National Performing Arts Editor; he also presents the weekly program SmartArts on Three Triple R FM. Richard is a life member of the Melbourne Queer Film Festival, a Melbourne Fringe Festival Living Legend, and was awarded the 2019 Sidney Myer Performing Arts Awards' Facilitator's Prize in early 2020. He received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Green Room Awards Association in 2021, and a Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) in June 2024. Photo: Fiona Hamilton. Follow Richard on Bluesky @richardthewatts.bsky.social and Instagram @richard.l.watts