Rita Wilson performed to a sold out Aussie crowd days before coronavirus diagnosis

Rita Wilson and her actor husband, Tom Hanks, have been struck down with coronavirus while on the Gold Coast in Australia.

The couple have been in Australia since January, with Rita performing on stage and Tom working on Baz Luhrmann’s unnamed Elvis Presley movie.

Now, photos show the 63-year-old singer performing to an ‘intimate’ sold out crowd at Brisbane’s Emporium Hotel on South Bank last week, on March 5th.

Her 63-year-old husband, Tom and her son, Truman are believed to have been in attendance.

The photos show a ballroom at the hotel decked out with round tables, as guests are served dinner and wine, with many of them sitting just metres from the stage.

Speaking with Yahoo Lifestyle, Hunter Region nurse and researcher, Jessica Stokes-Parish said: “The virus is transmitted via droplets, so it is plausible that the spray may from vocals might be sprayed on to those in a one metre radius.”

Rita and her two guitarists were pictured beaming from ear-to-ear on stage, just days before it was announced the star and her husband have contracted the virus, which is officially being called a pandemic.

Two days after her Brisbane appearance, Rita took to the stage in the Utzon Room at Sydney Opera House to again perform for a packed crowd.

Then, on Tuesday, she performed on the Today Extra, where she posed for an Instagram photo with hosts David Campbell and Belinda Russell.

On Thursday, Tom Hanks took to his Instagram account to confirm that the couple have been diagnosed with coronavirus.

“Hello, folks. Rita and I are down here in Australia,” Tom wrote on Instagram.

“We felt a bit tired, like we had colds, and some body aches. Rita had some chills that came and went. Slight fevers too. To play things right, as is needed in the world right now, we were tested for the Coronavirus, and were found to be positive.

Well, now. What to do next? The Medical Officials have protocols that must be followed. We Hanks’ will be tested observed, and isolated for as long as public health and safety requires. Not much more to it than a one-day-at-a-time approach, no?

We’ll keep the world posted and updated.

Take care of yourselves!”

The pair join more than 120 other cases confirmed in Australia as of Wednesday, and are rumoured to be in quarantined in Gold Coast Private Hospital.

The hospital was unable to comment on the reports.

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