An Australian music festival that was set to go ahead this weekend has been cancelled at the eleventh hour, with angry campers headed to the event reportedly turning up to the news that the festival would not be going ahead.
Gates to the Whitsunday Calling music festival, held on a private block on the corner of Gregory Cannon Valley and Richardson Roads, were scheduled to open on Saturday 5th October, with a weekend-long lineup featuring headliners Ash Grunwald and Rose Tattoo, along with a bill featuring Daryl Braithwaite, The Radiators, Jenny Morris, and New Zealand’s Katchafire and 1814.
However Whitsunday Calling’s promoters, Live Events And Promotions (LEAP), notified punters of the festival’s cancellation via an announcement on the event’s Facebook page at 5.30pm on the afternoon of Thursday 3rd October ahead of the Labour Day weekend, as The Whitsunday Times reports.
“This is the post we hoped we would never have to do: it is with deep sadness and regret that we have to announce that the Whitsunday Calling Music Festival has been cancelled as of 5.30 this evening,” read the Facebook post.
“All ticket holders will receive a refund via the ticketing website. We are devastated as we passionately wanted this event to be a success but due to circumstances beyond our control it was not to be. So sorry to disappoint all of you as this promised to be such a fantastic event but PLEASE continue to support live music events wherever you can,” read the statement.
The original post however has since been removed, presumably because of the ream of negative comments from ticket-holders who had travelled to the event in preparation for the weekend. One deleted comment noted that driving past the event site, that it appeared that nothing had been set up for the two-day music festival, which was to feature camping, food stalls, and markets. “We are devastated as we passionately wanted this event to be a success but due to circumstances beyond our control it was not to be.”
LEAP have posted a new, more simplified message on Facebook this morning that reads: “Due to circumstances beyond our control this event has been cancelled.” With further comments from promoters explaining, “we were let down by the company supplying the P.A. system and despite our best efforts to source a replacement supplier, no equipment was available to the standard expected by these international bands at such short notice.”
More disgruntled festival-goers have now commented on the cancellation. “What a fucking joke! Totally unorganized fuck up! Absolutely pathetic. You should be ashamed of yourself! I just flew here from Sydney and you cancel the day before the event?? No one will ever trust you again,” blasted one angry commenter, while another noted: “we have people traveling from nsw and they have no where to go! Shame on you. Don’t expect any support from of us. And word of mouth is a killer!”
Whitsunday Calling was to donate its proceeds to charity, as part of an official partnership with IDEAL Placements, a not-for-profit, community based government funded employment agency providing jobs for people with disabilities. “We have been officially accepted by IDEAL Placements as a partner where all profits from this event will be controlled by IDEAL Placements management sub committee,” reads a statement on the event’s official website.
The news of the cancellation follows what’s been a particular low point for the Australian music festival market. In the short span of five weeks, there’s been the cancellation of Harvest, Pyramid Rock, and Big Day Out‘s second day in Sydney, and troubles for the likes of the inaugural Boomerang, ATP’s Release The Bats, Supafest, as well as the likely cancellation of Summadayze as messy liquidation proceedings get underway for Future Entertainment Pty Ltd and Fat As Butter promoters Mothership Music.
Meanwhile, a new industry survey has detailed the reasons why punters aren’t going to music festivals or purchasing tickets, citing poor lineups, financial costs, and even other punters as key influences in attending an event.
