Indie arts spaces defy COVID gloom

From Canberra to East Gippsland, the indie theatre sector shows no sign of calling it quits.

An independent theatre relocating from Footscray to East Gippsland; a temporary performing arts space opening in Melbourne’s inner north; and a Canberra theatre revealing its debut program are all signs that the sector refuses to be cowed by COVID-19.

In Brunswick, in Melbourne’s inner north, a new temporary performing arts theatre named The Citizens Theatre is opening thanks to a partnership between These Are The Projects We Do Together (Testing Grounds, Siteworks, TwoSixty) and The Liminal Space.

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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 Sidney Myer Performing Arts Awards' Facilitator's Prize in 2020. In 2021 he received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Green Room Awards Association. Most recently, Richard received a Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) in June 2024. Follow him on Twitter: @richardthewatts