Festivals and events cancelled across the country

As Victoria declares a state of emergency, festivals and organisations across the nation are cancelling and postponing their programming – with widespread ramifications for casual arts workers.

16 Mar 2020 12:00

Richard Watts

Writing and Publishing

Photo by Tim Mossholder on Unsplash.

Major cultural institutions across Victoria have announced their temporary closure from today (Monday 16 March) in a bid to reduce the spread of the coronavirus COVID-19.

The move follows the cancellation of festivals and events across the country including Vivid Live, Dark Mofo, and Opera Australia’s Sydney season.

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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