$2 million bequest for independent dance sector is ‘truly unprecedented’

Fellowships for 10 mid-career artists and 10 independent artists are 'potentially life changing,' says choreographer Lucy Guerin.

A $2 million bequest – including 10 separate $100,000 fellowships for mid-career artists and 10 separate $50,000 fellowships for independent artists – is expected to have a ‘transformative’ effect on Australia’s contemporary dance sector.

The bequest, left by former Lucy Guerin Inc (LGI) Chair Chloe Munro AO and administered by LGI, also includes $500,000 for the development and presentation of new works and general operations at LGI itself.

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Richard Watts OAM is ArtsHub's 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