Australia experienced some of the longest Covid lockdowns in the world. Anna Freeland and Hannah Reich assess the impact on theatre.
At 4pm on Thursday August 5, 2021, the cast of Cyrano was gathered on Melbourne Theatre Company’s Sumner stage to hear final notes ahead of the evening’s premiere.
There had been zero COVID cases in Victoria the day before and Premier Daniel Andrews and the whole state had breathed a collective sigh of relief.
But that morning, rumours of new cases started to swirl, and talk of another lockdown.
“Somebody had checked their phone, and I’ll never forget the look on their face,” recalls Virginia Gay, Cyrano’s playwright and star.
The cast, creatives and crew, whose rehearsals had been interrupted by a lockdown in July, began to prepare for another, assuming it would start at midnight — as it had before.
But this lockdown was announced for 8pm — snuffing out any hope for Cyrano’s opening night...Keep reading on ABC Arts.
At 4pm on Thursday August 5, 2021, the cast of Cyrano was gathered on Melbourne Theatre Company’s Sumner stage to hear final notes ahead of the evening’s premiere.
There had been zero COVID cases in Victoria the day before and Premier Daniel Andrews and the whole state had breathed a collective sigh of relief.
But that morning, rumours of new cases started to swirl, and talk of another lockdown.
“Somebody had checked their phone, and I’ll never forget the look on their face,” recalls Virginia Gay, Cyrano’s playwright and star.
The cast, creatives and crew, whose rehearsals had been interrupted by a lockdown in July, began to prepare for another, assuming it would start at midnight — as it had before.
But this lockdown was announced for 8pm — snuffing out any hope for Cyrano’s opening night...Keep reading on ABC Arts.