Betty Who Was ‘The Sickest I’ve Ever Been’ While Battling Nasty E. coli Infection

Australian singer/actor Betty Who revealed in an Instagram Story on Tuesday (Aug.

18) that she is dealing with a wicked E. coli infection that resulted in them missing a prominent spot at the inaugural three-day Broadway-celebrating music event The Festival in New York’s Hudson Valley over the weekend.

The 34-year-old artist born Jessica Newham, who uses she/they pronouns, wrote, “ hiii i’m just coming up for air from my big week . i was feeling sick before i left for @thebroadwayfest but i flew on thursday with every intention of toughing it out! when i landed in ny, i knew something was wrong and that i needed a doctor.” The festival dubbed “Coachella For Broadway” kicked off on Friday (Aug.

14) and wrapped-up on Sunday (Aug.

16) at the Hutton Brickyards, a chic riverfront hotel overlooking the Hudson River in New York’s Ulster County.

Fans were able to check out a galaxy of musical theater stars including: Audra McDonald, Kelli O’Hara, Brian Stokes Mitchell, Alex Newell, Eva Noblezada and original Rent cast slums Adam Pascal and Anthony Rapp.

Who, however, was forced to bow out due to the infection, which the Cleveland Clinic describes as a “group of bacteria that can cause infections in your gut (GI tract), urinary tract and other parts of your body.” The bacteria can often live in your gut without incident, but some strains can cause watery diarrhea, stomach pain, vomiting and fever.

“everyone at the festival was amazing,” added Who, who was scheduled to appear on the main lineup on night one, host a late night campfire sing-along and premiere the musical Love Somebody , which they wrote the lyrics and music for.

“they took such good care of me and were so gracious about re-programming all my songs at the last minute. i was devastated tbh.” Who said when she returned home she realized she had E. coli and described the nasty symptoms.

“got home, turns out it’s e.coli.

COOL AND GREAT I LOVE IT maybe the sickest i’ve ever been? really wild,” she said.

“i’m finalllly able to keep water down and am drinking broth!!! i am soooo sad about missing so much of the festival. i’m sorry to anyone who was lookin around for me thinkin where the heck is this guy!!! i was a mile away throwing up.” The Story also included a snap of a sad-faced Who laying in bed on what they said was day nine of the infection, with the positive update, “i am so much better than i was when i was in ny but still not quite in fighting shape.” Luckily, the musician shared in another slide, she had the on-court action at the Cincinnati Open tennis tournament to keep herself busy.

Who made their Broadway debut in 2023 in Hadestown as queen of the underworld Persephone.

Her most recent full-length album was 2022’s Big! , which was followed by the 2025 EP Love Yourself .