Introduction

The National Arts Centre (NAC), a globally respected arts institution, regularly hosts hundreds of events per year, including orchestra and pop-music concerts, theatre, ballet, art exhibits, and children’s programing amongst others. If a person wanted to, they could experience some type of art event every night of the week. Sadly, all of this came to a halt in March 2020.

Event cancellations began on March 13, 2020, when the NAC decided to postpone performances to April 5, 2020.  And as that temporary reopening date drew nearer, the likelihood of returning to in-person concerts faded away. 

The NAC was quick to adapt, though, when they began hiring Canadian artists to perform livestreamed concerts, through the NAC’s online platforms.  And by Fall 2020, the NAC Orchestra (NACO) were allowed perform livestreamed concerts as a part of their NACO LIVE series, albeit with a fraction of the orchestra’s members, due to Covid-19 safety protocols.  

Despite the many challenges, musicians have come up with creative solutions to manage. Fortunately, several NAC members and soloists were gracious enough to share their pandemic experiences, as artists, performers, teachers, and citizens of a musical world grappling with the impact of Covid-19 on their personal and professional lives. Their experiences bring a new perspective to the impact that Covid-19 had on the arts.

This exhibit documents the pandemic’s effect on the arts, musicians, communities, social connections, education and pedagogy, and racial inequity.